Super Smash Bros Clash: when realities collide
by Shinywolf
Summary: Tabuu has been defeated. The Smash universe is at peace and Master Hand had decided to host the best tournament ever. But what will happen when a new threat arise? And why there is a human from the "real" world? Come here and check. Rated T to be sure. Chapter 6 progress: 57%
1. Prologue: when reality meets fantasy

Prologue: "When reality meets fantasy"

**A/N: Hi there! I'm Shinywolf, a rookie writer. This is my very first fanfic, so I hope you won't bash me too much. I accept any kind of criticism, but no flames. I don't want to burn myself!**

**Maybe you'll find some grammar errors (after all English is my third language), so if you spot any mistake let me know and I'll fix it.**

**But why are you reading this author note? Go ahead and start reading my story!**

**Disclaimer: Uh, I have to read this? Seriously? … Umpf, fine! I don't own Super Smash Bros Brawl or any other Nintendo product, like consoles, videogames, toys, mangas, yadda yadda… Ok? Perfect!**

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><p>Once upon a time, in the center of the Smash Cosmos, there was a beautiful place known as the Smash Mansion. This castle was the home of powerful fighters known as the Super Smash Brothers (and Sisters), or simply Smashers: beings recognized in their respective worlds as heroes and villains, and gathered in the same place in order to prove their strength in an eternal clash between good and evil…<p>

_Mh, maybe this beginning is a bit clichéd and overused, what do you think? _

Crowd: …

Reader: "Hey, begin this story already, will ya?"

_Ok, ok! Sheez, I was only asking. Let's start… again!_

The sun was shining, the sky was clear, the birds were chirping, there was no trace of fear. Peace was reigning all around Smashville after the defeat of Tabuu, and Master Hand had decided to host a tournament in which the brave saviors of the Smash Cosmos could fight and show their skills: the SUPER SMASH BROS BRAWL TOURNAMENT.

The fights were held in the Smash Mansion and broadcast universe-wide. People from the various parts of the universe were cheering for their favorites and for the heroes representing their respective worlds.

The match of the day was a Brawl between four well known veterans: Mario, the Mushroom Kingdom's hero and plumber; Link, the Hero of Time and excellent swordsman; Kirby, the pink puffball from Dream Land; and Pikachu, the most famous electric rodent of the Pokéworld. The selected stage was the Final Destination, with a time limit of five minutes and with no items of any kind. The four warriors were staring at each other, in their respective defense stances, and were waiting for the beginning of the match. The other Smashers were seated in special seats, separated from the rest of the audience, and them too were waiting the signal of the match's beginning. It was indeed a perfect day and no one could ruin it, right? WRONG!

There was an evil being lurking in the darkest and farthest part of the Smash Cosmos, trapped in a prison made of spatial-temporal strings, courtesy of the two powerful Legendary Pokémon Dialga and Palkia, and reinforced by the sixteen Arceus's plates and some other divine powers. He was watching the Final Destination from a hole present in his prison, too small to let him go out but big enough to let him see. The creature scowled at the sight of the four heroes and punched the hole in an attempt to break free, but without success.

"_STUPID PRISON, STUPID SMASHERS, STUPID HANDS!"_ shouted the being angrily. _"DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN REPLACE ME WITH THESE… FREAKS? DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT?"_

He was pacing back and forth, trying to control his anger, to no avail._ "WELL, LET'S SEE WHAT YOU'RE GONNA DO WHEN I'LL GET OUT OF HERE! OH, YEAH, WE'LL SEE!"_

He then turned at the sky above him. It had a strange reddish shade in it, with some cosmic dust swirling in rather odd patterns and static electricity filling the space. _"…IT'S ALMOST TIME. I ONLY NEED A CONTACT FROM THE OTHER REALITY AND THEN I'LL BE FREE, AFTER YEARS AND YEARS OF CAPTIVITY. TREMBLE, MASTER HAND, CRAZY HAND AND ALL YOU SMASHERS! TREMBLE WITH FEAR UNDER MY POWER! IT'S TIME… FOR REVENGE! WAH HA HA HA!"_

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><p><strong>Meanwhile, in another reality…<strong>

"Yeah, mom, I have already done all my homework! No, no, seriously! ... Yeah, the school is tomorrow, right. I know, I know! No, I'm not goofing around! _(Not yet!)_ I'm… doing some research. Really! ... Come on, it's the last day of summer holidays! I want to do something entertaining! Don't… ok, I promise! I won't eat any cookie, I swear! … Oh, thanks mom! Ok, see you later! Ciao!"

CLUNK!

"Oh, yeah, finally! I can play Super Smash Bros Brawl! …well, until Mom's return, but still… YAY!"

The person in question was a fifteen years old girl, with a plait of brown curly hair, brown eyes almost black, fair skin and a bit short for her age. She was wearing a yellow shirt with depicted some red hibiscus flowers, a red scarf around her neck, a pair of long blue jeans and golden high-heeled shoes. She was stamping her right foot happily, grinning in an almost devilish way, before turning on the TV and Nintendo Wii.

"I don't understand why Mom never let me play freely with the Wii! I don't get it! I mean, it will never suck me and send me to some weird dimension with game characters everywhere, right? That's… ridiculous! And besides, I always do my homework, so she doesn't have to worry about school deficiencies, right?"

She shook her head and took the CD of SSBB out from its case. "I'd better stop talking to myself! I don't want to be seen like a crazy!"

She then inserted the CD in the designed hole of the console and clicked in the square with the game title using the Wiimote. Suddenly, a thunder roared through the air, making the girl jump on her spot. "Oh, my…"

She rapidly turned her head to the window and saw some black clouds covering the sky and crackling with electricity. "Fantastic, now is going to rain! Yay! I love rain!" said the girl sarcastically. "Umpf, let's ignore the storm! I wanna play! Let's ROCK!"

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><p>"<em>UH? WHAT'S HAPPENING?"<em>

The prisoner turned his attention to a strange portal that was opening in the sky, and that was slowly expanding the hole of his prison. _"OH, FINALLY! EHEHEH!"_

The creature approached the portal and began looking through it. _"SO SHE IS MY VESSEL! WELL, WELL, WELL… INTERESTING, A POWERLESS HUMAN! SHE'S PERFECT!"_

He then looked at the portal and frowned. _"MH, IT'S NOT BIG ENOUGH TO LET ME GO OUT, BUT IF I MANAGE TO LET THE HUMAN GO THROUGH IT HER PRESENCE WILL BE ENOUGH TO DISRUPT THE BALANCE OF THE PORTAL. THE RESULTING EXPLOSION WILL PROBABLY KILL HER, BUT I DON'T CARE! SHE'S ONLY A MERE, USELESS HUMAN AFTER ALL!"_

The being laughed evilly and inserted his black hand in the portal, determined to pursue his goal.

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><p>The health advertisement appeared on the screen. She simply pushed the A Button. "Pff, I don't have any problem! I'm sane, my boy!"<p>

Another thunder roared outside the window. "Holy cheese, stop roaring sky! You're distracting me!"

Suddenly a huge thunderbolt hit the lightning rod of the house, causing a black-out in the entire apartment. The girl yelped in fright. That was very close!

"Oh dear…" said her, before glancing at the TV and then at the Wii. "Oh, my… if that thunderbolt had fried my Wii Mom is gonna kill me! She had to pay a lot to repair it!"

Biting the nails of her right hand, the teen approached the console lying on the ground. Suddenly, the lights of the Wii turned on, but they weren't blue like they used to be. They were strangely gleaming a dazzling crimson red. "Uh? What's wrong?"

She stared at the lights for a while, before reaching out for the instructions book of the console and beginning to consult it. "Red light, red light, red light… there is nothing about any crimson red light of the Wii! What's going on?"

After saying that the TV turned on, but only static appeared on the screen. "Fantastic, now even the TV is acting up? I'm sooo screwed!" cried the lady in despair. All of a sudden, the pixels on the screen began swirling, and swirling, and swirling, and swirling…

The girl was both scared and fascinated by this strange event. Her gaze was fixed on the screen. All those colored pixels were hypnotizing her, making her slowly lose her consciousness. "What's… that… thing?" she muttered lowly.

Then an evil laugh came from the TV, snapping the teen out of her trance. "Wh-what…?"

Her eyes widened when she saw something black coming from the center of the vortex. It was approaching threateningly to her and began pushing the glass of the appliance. The girl was frozen in fear and began shaking violently…

A loud scream reverberated in the house.

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><p><strong>3... 2... 1... GO!<strong>

The four heroes lunged at each other, determined to land the first hit. Mario managed to punch Link on the face, while Kirby managed to hit Pikachu in the stomach. Link retaliated with a Spin Attack, hitting the three Smashers at the same time. Pikachu then summoned a Thunder from the sky, but the others had seen it coming and dodged the attack. The mouse growled and tried to attack again, but was sent flying after receiving a kick from Mario. The plumber then released two fireballs and sent them at Link and Kirby, but the Hero of Time deflected it with the shield, while Kirby swallowed it and spit it out in the form of a star. Mario dodged the star with his famous jump, while Link blocked it using his shield again.

"Ah, your long ranged attacks can't hit me!" said Link triumphantly.

"Yeah, you're right! Maybe we can't hit you with projectile moves…"

The green clad hero turned to see the electric creature charging him with a full power Skull Bash. He tried to move, but the attack connected and sent him flying "…but we can still kick your butt with our physical moves." Pikachu then laughed.

The Italian plumber had grabbed Kirby by his stubby arms and after hitting him several times he flung the pink puffball in the air, making him collide with the already flying Link. He then proceeded to attack Pikachu with a fireball, while the latter sent a Thunder Jolt at the red hero.

***AUDIENCE***

"Go Big Bro, go! You can win!" "Mario! Come on, win for the Mushroom Kingdom!" "You'd better win, plumber! Or losing to you will be more humiliating!" cheered Luigi, Peach and Bowser respectively.

"Link! Win for us!" "Kick their butts, big me!" "Hey, I thought he was MY big me!" "No, he's not! He's mine!" "No, is mine!" "Mine!" "Mine!" "MINE!" "MINE!" The two younger versions of Link were glaring at each other, hands in their swords, ready to start a fight. "Please, kids, there is no need of violence!" Zelda said, trying to calm them. "I'M NOT A KID!" the two heroes shouted at the same time. Zelda sighed, while Ganondorf said nothing. He simply snorted.

"May the force be with you, young warrior." "Hey, can you be less serious for once, Meta Knight? Come on, is Kirby's first fight in this tournament!" Meta Knight didn't reply. "Whatever!" replied King Dedede.

"Go Pikachu! Show them what you can do!" "Yeah, show them brother!" "Yay, win for us, Pika-dear!" cheered Red the Pokemon Trainer, Pichu and Jigglypuff. Mewtwo and Lucario were simply watching.

The rest of the audience were cheering for their favorite. Some of them didn't care about who was going to be the winner. They simply wanted to see some action.

***STADIUM***

Kirby and Link engaged in a sword fight. Their shining blades connected with every single hit, showing the determination of both the Smashers to not lose. Mario and Pikachu were sparring throwing to the each other their respective element: fire and electricity.

The heroes were so focused in their fight that none of them noticed a vortex that appeared above them. The audience however noticed it and began wondering what that was.

Link managed to stab Kirby with his sword, and while the pink creature tried to shallow him the green hero threw a bomb directly at his mouth, resulting in an explosion that sent the Dream Land hero flying. While he was floating back to the stadium, the tornado above him exploded and from it a flaming star connected with him, surprising the puffball and making him crash in the floor with a surprised "Poyo!".

The others Smashers froze in place and looked at the point where Kirby landed. The audience fell silent for a moment, before murmuring something. Even the two white hands were surprised. That was a thing that was NOT supposed to happen.

"Kirby?" Mario asked worriedly. No response.

Pikachu decided to approach the pink hero and when he was close enough gasped. "Mario! Link! Quick, come over here!" cried the Pokémon.

The two mentioned heroes approached the spot. "Master Hand, suspend the match!" shouted Link. When the red plumber and the green hero approached Pikachu they gasped too.

Upon the pink hero was a young human girl. She had torn clothes and was singed all around the body. Her hair was a complete mess and her breathing was shallow and uneven.

Kirby woke up soon after. He wasn't too much hurt thanks to his flexible body. He put her down carefully to the floor and his eyes widened in concern.

"_Mamma mia_! This girl is badly hurt! Quick Link, take her to the infirmary! Hurry!" commanded Mario.

The hero simply nodded and scooped her up in his arms. He then started running as fast as he could, with the others trailing behind him. There was a life at stake.

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><p><strong>AN: So what do you think? It isn't that bad, right? Right? Umpf, whatever! If you want to review you simply have to click the button below you, that's all. Well, see you next time!**

**P.S.: Oh, as you can see I decided to put the Melee characters in my story. If you have any suggestion for their movesets let me know. Ciao!**

***Shinywolf***


	2. Ch 1: the reality traveler's awakening

Chapter 1: "The reality traveler's awakening"

**A/N: Hello there! I'm back! This is the first true chapter of my story! Yay! First to all I want to thank Suki Takayoshi for reading my story and for being my very first reviewer.**

**?: Yeah, thank you so much! And now let's celebrate with cookies! COOKIES FOR EVERYONE!**

**Shinywolf: Of course! Let's celeb… wait, what are you doing here? Weren't you unconscious in the last chapter?**

**?: … I was?**

***awkward silence***

**Shinywolf: Ehm… you'd better return to the story. The readers are waiting for it.**

**?: Ah, ok! See you later, wolfie! *runs off***

**Shinywolf: I'm not a wolf… well, what can I say? Have a nice reading, my dear fellows!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any Nintendo product… yet!**

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><p>Tick, tack, tick, tack, tick, tack, tick, tack…<p>

Time seemed to pass slower than usual. Link, Pikachu and Kirby were glancing at the big clock in the waiting room. Waiting for some news… hopefully good.

The green clad hero was tapping his fingers on the chair's arm, slowly growing impatient. Pikachu was holding his ears high, trying to detect every single sound from the other room, where Doctor Mario and Mario were treating the injured girl. Kirby was massaging the top of his head, while the scene of the teen falling on top of him was replaying over and over in his mind.

Link then decided that he had enough. He stood up and reached for the door knob, but was blocked by the two little creatures. "Let me go! I don't want to wait anymore! I want to know if that girl is alright! Let me go!" shouted the hero, trying to free himself from the duo's grip.

"Don't be reckless, Link! We're as worried as you! But we have to be patient. Let the two Marios work at peace, please!" said Pikachu, struggling to keep a hold on the much bigger hero.

"Pikachu is right! If you make them rush they will be more error-prone! And right now we can't risk anything, poyo!" cried Kirby, tightening his grip around Link's left leg.

The boy sighed. The two little creatures had a point. Doctor Mario had clearly said that the teenager's condition was critical and a single mistake could be fatal. The mustached men needed concentration and silence more than ever.

So the Hylian simply seated down in the same chair of before, trying to stay calm and follow the mouse's and pink puffball's advice. But as much as he tried, he couldn't remove the appearance of the young human from his mind: all those burn marks all over the teen's body; her shredded shirt and jeans with several cuts beneath them; her unsteady breathing, almost asthmatic; her messed hair, which was strangely sparking with static electricity…

"… sorry! But this waiting is unbearable! I'm feeling so useless, right now! I want to help! I don't want that girl to die!" said Link, with his blue eyes directed to the infirmary's door. Pikachu and Kirby looked at him for a brief moment, before following his gaze.

"Well, this is a normal behavior for a hero like you. We know perfectly that you'll do anything to protect the innocents and the defenseless, especially for your sweet princess…" replied Pikachu, chuckling at the last part of his sentence. Link glared at the rodent and had to resist the urge of throwing him a bomb. Suddenly various noises and murmurs could be heard from the corridor, and were increasing steadily in volume.

"Hey, what's that ruckus?" asked the yellow mouse, turning his look toward the origin of the fuss. All of a sudden, the door of the corridor burst open, allowing some of the people from the outside to enter in the waiting room. Pikachu released some sparks in surprise, shocking Kirby.

"Owch!" yelped the pink puffball, looking angrily at Pikachu.

"Sorry!" apologized the mouse.

Zelda and Peach approached the three heroes. "So? Still no news?" asked Peach, with a bit of concern in her voice. The trio simply shook their heads.

"I see… I hope everything will turn out okay…" said Zelda, her voice filled with concern.

"Of course everything will turn out okay. I mean… we're talking about Doctor Mario, after all. And we have plenty of healing items for every type of injury and illness, as well as curative magic." replied Peach.

"Mh, I hope you're right…"

TLUCK! (door opening)

Everybody turned to the source of the noise. There was Mario standing in front of the infirmary door, lost in his thoughts and looking down. Link, Pikachu and Kirby sprinted forward, followed by the two princesses.

"So, Mario? How is she?" asked Peach.

Mario looked up at her, his eyes showing his worry. "Mh, not too good, to be honest. We treated her wounds and gave her a couple of Heart Containers, but she is still unconscious. And her recovery is slower than expected." said the plumber, crossing his arms and averting his gaze from the others. "We also found out that she had been hit by some powerful lightning bolts, causing damage to various parts of her body. We managed to heal them, but her respiration and heart beat are still weak and uncoordinated".

The room fell silent for a while, letting the news sink in. The silence was interrupted by Marth. "But… she will survive, right?"

Every Smasher was watching at Mario, hoping to hear an affirmative response. Heck, even the villains were anxious to know (even the bad guys have at least a piece of heart, you know).

The Italian hero put a hand on his chin and thought for a moment. "Maybe. I'm not completely sure… but I have a feeling that she's gonna make it. We have done everything we could do. Now we can only wait."

Everyone nodded, if there wasn't anything to do… all the Smashers but the Mario Bros, Link, the princesses, Kirby and Pikachu left the waiting room and headed somewhere else: some returned to their respective rooms, some went to train, some went to the Smash Bar. The remaining Smash Brothers simply sat down on some chairs and waited. Waited for the girl's awakening.

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><p>Tick, tack, tick, tack...<p>

Doctor Mario was writing his report and registering the teenager's healing progress. Once in a while he glanced at her, hoping to see some movement, even minimal. The doc could not stand seeing someone suffering, good or evil. That's why he hated fighting. During the Melee Tournament he was a renowned Smasher, but he chose to leave the competition and dedicate his time treating and taking care of the injured and sick fighters. But when needed he could pull his lethal pills and defend anyone who needed his help with all his might.

The man in white was checking some bandages around the girl's left hand when he noticed a faint movement from the teenager's head. It was so subtle that any normal person probably wouldn't notice it, but the doctor has a natural skill at noticing the body signals of any being. He then heard some moaning coming from the young human. His eyes immediately lit up and rushed to the door to let the others know. "She's regaining consciousness! Quick, come over here!"

Finally! The Smashers gasped at this good news and, in a blink of an eye, they were standing in front of the doctor. "Really? She's waking up?" exclaimed Link, his face as bright as the sun.

"Could I ever lie about this kind of news? Of course she's waking up!" replied the medic, slightly offended.

"Sorry! Can we enter?"

"Mh, sure! Come!"

All the heroes except for Zelda entered in the infirmary room.

"I'll go and spread the news to all the others. See you later!"

"O…" the doctor could not finish his sentence that the princess was already gone in a flash. "… kay?" concluded the man, before shaking his head slightly and reuniting with the waiting fighters.

The aforementioned people gathered around the bed where the girl was lying, their eyes looking for any movement from the bandaged teenager. "Come on, wake up!"

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><p><em>... voices... I hear... voices... what... what are they saying... ungh... they're too muffled… and distant… I can't...understand them… my head is spinning… w… wake… up… wake up… mh… wake up… ungh… there is… a bright light… outside… well… let's see… I'd better open my eyes… and see… where am I…<em>

The girl began opening her right eye, but shut it soon afterward.

_Umpf… it's too bright… now I'm half blinded, great! ... let's try again… slower…_

This time the teen opened both her eyes. She had to blink a couple of times and to squint her eyes because there was too much light, and even after that her vision was very blurry. The first thing she noticed was a big lamp that was illuminating all the room. A completely white room.

_A light… don't tell me I'm dead… maybe I'm really dead… after all what happened… I'm not surprised! Weird, I thought the afterlife was a fiery inferno, or a place filled with cookies and pizza… it seems I was wrong. Death is a giant white room… fantastic… I can still hear the voices… where are they coming from?_

She slowly turned her head to her right side. All she saw was a strange red blur near a green figure. The green one was taller than the red one, and behind them was a yellow and pink shape.

_What… what are those? They're saying something… they're directed to me?_

The girl rubbed her eyes a little, and focused her gaze to the three figures. Now she could see them slightly better.

The red blur was a brown-haired man with a big mustache and blue eyes. He was wearing a blue salopette with underneath a red shirt, and a red hat with a big red M in the middle of a white circle.

The green figure was a rather tall man, he had blue eyes too but his hair was blonde. He was wearing a green hat and green clothes, and around his waist there was a brown belt with hung a shining sword.

The last person was a woman with blond hair and blue eyes (gosh, everybody has blue eyes around here?), she had a golden crown on her head and was wearing a large pink dress and white gloves.

They seemed… familiar, somehow.

The princess then spoke. "Finally you're awake. We were worried that you wouldn't make it! How are you feeling?"

"… oh, I'm feeling… quite nice. Maybe a bit numb, but nothing serious. Don't worry Peach, Mario and Link!"

She paused for a moment after realizing what she had just said.

_Wait, what?_

She slowly shifted from her supine position to a more erect one. Her brown eyes widened and her jaw dropped.

"EEEEEK!" yelled the girl in shock.

The people in the room jumped at her sudden outburst, staring at her and unsure about how to react.

"But-but-but-but… t-that is im-po-po-po-possible… h-h-how…" stuttered the brown-haired lady, exhaling and inhaling rapidly and with her heart pounding hard.

She then pointed her trembling index finger to the red plumber. "You… you are M-Mario? The real Mario? The Mushroom Kingdom's hero? The Italian plumber? Mr. Jumpman? The one that has to always save the Princess from Bowser's clutches?"

The mentioned hero was taken aback by all these questions. He was about to answer when the girl pointed her finger to the Hyrulian hero. "And you! Y-you're Link! The bearer of the Triforce of Courage! The Legendary Hero chosen by the gods! The only one who can hold the Master Sword! The hero that has to save Princess Zelda from the evil Ganondorf!"

The green man was at a loss of words. She knew a lot of things about him and he did know nothing about her. Maybe she was the umpteenth fangirl… or maybe not! He could feel her fear and confusion in the tone of her voice, not admiration. He simply kept staring at her.

"And… and you're… P-Princess Peach Toadstool! The ruler of the Toads and the Mushroom Kingdom! Bowser's primary goal! One of the few humans of your world!"

The royal simply nodded. She was a bit offended about the remark about her and the Koopa King, but said nothing. After all, the little human was a total nervous wreck right now.

Clutching her heart, the teenager began shaking and raised the blanket up to her mouth with her free hand. What was happening?

"You… me… us… what… how…"

She then felt someone patting her back, and immediately turned her attention to the one who was making contact with her. Her eyes crossed the gaze of the white doctor, who was smiling at her. "Don't worry, my girl! You don't have anything to fear! We aren't going to hurt you. Now, you'd better relax. The stress won't do any good for you, especially in your actual condition."

She was staring at him, more confused than before. Realization hit her when she glanced at her body: it was covered in bandages and scorched in some places. Her widened eyes met the looks of the other people that were beside the medic. "Doctor Mario… Luigi… Kirby… Pikachu…" murmured the teen, shaking her head. After that she closed her eyes.

_Ok, stay calm! This is only a dream! A figment of your overflowing imagination. They're not here! They're not here! You're only imagining them! Now… when you'll open your eyes, they'll be gone and you'll be at home, playing with the Wii or surfing the web! Count until 3 and open your eyes. 1… 2… 3… now!_

She opened her eyes and… she was still there. In a big white room with game characters surrounding her bed.

_WHAAAT?! It can't be! It's only a dream! A well-made dream, but still a dream!_

That was scary. Usually dreams didn't last so long. She then looked at Luigi and extended her left arm. "Pinch me!"

"Uh… what?"

"I said to pinch me! This is only a dream, after all! Nothing is real! Come on, pinch me! If someone is sleeping he doesn't feel any pain, right?"

Everybody sweatdropped. Was she normal?

"I… don't think is a good idea…"

"Come on, don't worry! It won't hurt me, right? Do it, please! I want to wake up!"

Luigi was staring at her, but decided to satisfy her request. He slowly extended his hand, looking for a point where she wasn't bandaged or hurt, and…

PING!

"Yowch! That… that HURTS!"

She instinctively retracted her arm and looked at it.

"S-sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"No, no! I-it's… it's ok. I… asked you… to do… after all… I… I…" she trailed off, unsure of what to say.

_No way! It did hurt! I felt the pain! The pain was… real! But… how? They… can't be real! They're only game characters, beings made of countless pixels in order to entertain people! It can't be… it can't be…_

"What's going on?" cried the young lady, clutching her head with the hands. "What's happening? It can't be real! That's impossible! Impossible!"

The Smashers were taken aback by this second outburst. They didn't understand her. What was her problem? Doctor Mario was the first to recover, and patted again the distressed girl's back. "There, there! There is no need to panic! What's wrong? If there is something that worries you, speak out. You can tell us everything you want. We'll be glad to help, if we can."

She looked at the doctor and then at all the others. Worried looks met her troubled gaze. She felt a pang of guilt in her heart. She didn't want to concern anyone. After exhaling and inhaling a couple of times and thinking to a way to express her thoughts, she spoke. "Well… the matter is… ungh… is that… you can't be real. You're… only virtual people made by programmers to entertain a crowd of kids and adults, with your magical abilities, incredible skills and illogical worlds. You're only a… a hobby! A mass of pixels and numbers and 0s and 1s! You're not real!"

Now they were baffled. Virtual people? Entertain kids and adults? Mass of pixels?

"Sorry if I contradict you, _signorina_, but we are as real as you! We both are composed of bones and flesh, blood and brain! We both stand under the same sky and breathe the same air. We both are sentient beings with feelings and emotions. Do we seem insensitive digital characters to you?"

The girl turned her attention to Mario, utterly fascinated by the plumber's words, while the others nodded in approbation.

"Wow. That was… so poetic and inspiring. You… impressed me… I didn't know that you…" said the teenager, her hand covering partially her mouth. "Mh… I… didn't want to offend you, sorry!" said her, before falling silent for a second. "Oh God! If the people of my world knew that you are really real, they would go crazy. Or panic. Or squeal. Or freak out! Or… whatever!"

She then snickered a bit. Oh, if they knew…

"Uhm, right… now that you mention it… where are you from, milady?" asked Link politely, leaning forward. The others followed suit.

The girl's expression changed from amused to blank. "I… I don't know for sure…" responded the teen plainly.

"You don't? How come?" replied the hero, frowning slightly.

"Well… ehm… my memories are still a bit fuzzy and confused. Too many things happened… you can't even imagine…" replied her, looking down and shaking her head sadly.

"Mh… ok, don't worry. It's not important right now. Can you tell us at least your name?" asked Peach, smiling at her.

"Oh, right! My name! Eh he he! How embarrassing, I didn't present myself!" said the other girl, scratching her head sheepishly. "Right! My name is…"

Suddenly the door that led to the waiting room burst open, interrupting the girl mid-sentence.

"YOU'RE AWAKE! YOU'RE AWAKE!" shouted the Smash Kids happily.

"YAAAAGH!" screamed the girl, startled.

The Smashers that were with her jumped in surprise. Pikachu released some sparks from his cheeks, electrocuting Luigi. "Owowowow!" yelped Luigi, feeling the electricity coursing through his body.

"Ops, sorry Luigi!"

The green plumber glared at the Pokémon, but said nothing. Everybody turned to see who had entered the room. The girl was agape, her eyes meeting every single gaze of every single Smasher.

_No way! The Super Smash Brothers… I can't believe it! They are here… in front of me! I'm seeing them… with my own eyes! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh!_

She was left speechless. The heroes and villains of her favorite game were there. In the same room! And were looking at her… yeah, looking. After a wave of sheer joy, nervousness filled the mind and heart of the young human. She lived in a little town and wasn't used to the crowd. And now about thirty pairs of eyes were looking at her at the same time.

"How many times do I have to tell you to not enter in the infirmary without knocking at the door? You almost caused us some heart attacks!" reprimanded Doctor Mario, looking with a reproachful gaze at the invaders. The good guys were looking at the medic apologetically, while the bad guys scoffed.

"Sorry, Doc. We only wanted to meet our unexpected guest personally…" said Red. "…even if not all the people here wanted to come."

Samus, Snake and the villains all turned their looks away.

The young human was wholly surprised. "Uh? Y-you wanted to meet… me?" asked the girl, pointing to herself.

"Well, yeah! I mean… you fell from an exploding vortex appeared from nowhere above the Final Destination stage! It's not a thing that happens normally during an official Brawl!" said Toon Link in amazement.

"And so? I… like stylish entrances!" replied the teen sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"… tell us. How are you feeling?" said Marth, a bit concerned.

"I'm feeling just peachy… I think."

"Hey, wait! You'd better be careful with her. We don't know who is she and what does she want. Maybe… she is a spy plotting against us!"

"Uh?"

"Admit it! You're using your adolescent pseudo-charm to infiltrate among us and try to discover our weak points or render us inoffensive!"

"W-what?"

"Don't try to fool me with your tricks, girl! I know the criminal minds like yours! You'd better confess what are you planning, or…"

"Ooor… w-what a-are you g-going to d-do?"

"_Leave her alone, Snake. She's not a wicked person. I can feel it from her aura."_ said Lucario, taking the defense of the girl. _"Stop scaring her!"_

The mentioned person simply snorted. "Umpf, fine! But if she does something that has even a small hint of suspicion…"

"I won't, I won't! I promise, I promise!" said the girl, alarmed.

"… good."

Mario shook his head and tapped the girl's back, obtaining her attention "Ignore Snake. He tends to be a bit suspicious around strangers, but when you know him he can be a portentous ally."

The teen simply nodded.

"Ok. Now… can you tell us your name?"

"Oh, yup!"

She looked around to make sure that everyone was listening. "Well, my name is…"

Then a strange portal appeared in the room, making a strange buzzing sound. The girl groaned and face-palmed.

_Now WHAT?_

Every Smasher gasped and bowed at the portal. The teen didn't understand what was happening. Why were they making a bow in front of a portal? Her question was answered soon after, when something, or better someone, exited from the portal.

She turned to the thing and… her face turned white and her eyes filled with dread. A large hand appeared in the room, so big that could easily pick her and crush her. _"HELLO, GIRL. GLAD THAT YOU ARE FINALLY AWAKE. I'M…"_

"HOLY CHEESE! THE EVIL HAND OF DOOM!" shouted the teenager, scared to death. She immediately hopped off the bed and hid under it. Her shaking was so violent that the whole bed was trembling.

The Smash Brothers sweatdropped at her strange behavior. Some of them snickered, while others just sighed or had puzzled looks.

Pikachu and Kirby decided to save her from her awkward situation and bent down, to see her directly in the face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" asked Pikachu, bewildered.

"Th-that hand… is… is going to k-kill me… he wants me d-dead!"

"Who, Master Hand? Oh no, don't worry, poyo. He can be scary sometimes, but he would never hurt a fly. He's a good guy!" said Kirby, smiling.

"Of course he would! He… uh, wait… did you say… Master Hand?"

"Uh… yes?"

She poked her head out and looked closely at the hand. He was… just the white Master Hand. Realizing her mistake, the teen blushed slightly in embarrassment and exited completely from her hiding place. She stood up and dusted herself, before bowing. "I-I'm so sorry, M-Messer Master Hand! I d-didn't want to f-freak out! S-sorry, I…"

All the villains started laughing, amused by the girl's little show. She sulked on her spot, wishing to disappear instantly, while the good guys glared at the bad, but they kept laughing.

"_OK, THAT'S ENOUGH! STOP YOUR LAUGHTER RIGHT NOW!"_

Everybody flinched and hushed after Master Hand's command. Nobody wanted to mess with him, that's for sure. He then turned to the young lady, who was staring at him with apologetic and scared eyes.

"_IT'S OK, YOUNG HUMAN. MOST PEOPLE TEND TO GET FRIGHTENED WHEN THEY SEE ME. I'M USED TO THAT, DON'T WORRY!"_

She kept staring at him for a while and then relaxed. He didn't seem so bad.

"O-ok. But I didn't want to o-offend you, sir. I just… confused you with someone else…"

"_SOMEONE ELSE?"_

"Yeah…" she paused, utterly ashamed.

"_MH… TELL US, YOUNG HUMAN, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"_

"Well, that's the same thing I want to know! I'm here only by accident… I think."

"_I SEE… NOW CAN YOU TELL US YOUR NAME?"_

She looked around to make sure that nothing interrupted her for the third time. She then cleared her throat and spoke. "Mh, ok! My name is… Juliet! And don't compare me with the Shakespearian one. I'm not anything like her _(even if I almost died, like my counterpart)_!"

"_JULIET… THAT'S A GOOD NAME, IF YOU ASK ME!"_

"Oh, thank you!" responded Juliet, smiling.

"_AND NOW THE MOST IMPORTANT THING… HOW DID YOU END IN THIS PITIFUL CONDITION?"_

She grimaced at the memories. She didn't want to talk about them at the moment.

"It's… a long story…"

"_WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME. AFTER YOUR SUDDEN ENTRANCE WE DECIDED TO POSTPONE THE INAUGURAL MATCH OF THE TOURNAMENT TO TOMORROW. SO SPEAK OUT. WE ALL WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU."_

Juliet frowned at this request, but after all she owed them for taking care of her. The least she could do was telling them all the misadventures she had been gone through. She breathed a couple of times and said "Ok, I'll tell you. But you all better listen to me. That's a very personal thing and I hate repeating myself!"

She glanced around the room to make sure that everybody was paying attention, before seating down on the bed and resuming. "Well, all began in the living room of my house. I was about to play a… game, when something odd happened. A lightning hit my house, causing a black-out in all the apartment. But suddenly my TV and console turned on and…"

* * *

><p><strong>*FLASHBACK*<strong>

_Her eyes widened when she saw something black coming from the center of the vortex. It was approaching threateningly to her and began pushing the glass of the appliance. The girl was frozen in fear and began shaking violently…_

The black hand broke the glass of the TV and immediately lunged at the teenager. Juliet's mind was shouting her to run away, but when her legs began moving it was too late: the black clawed hand gripped the girl firmly and didn't want to let her go. Juliet screamed and began to struggle, punch and kick to free herself, but the hand's grip was too strong for her and began pulling her to the screen. When her back touched the screen she felt an horrible tingling sensation spreading through her body and her struggles became more desperate and furious. She even gripped the sides of the television in a desperate attempt to not enter inside the appliance, but the dark being simply pulled harder and her hands and feet finally gave up.

She found herself in a strange tunnel, with colorful pixels and luminous streaks swirling around her. It could have been very fascinating if it wasn't for the scary situation in which the girl was at the moment. Seeing that the window of her world was becoming more and more distant, Juliet panicked and after some efforts managed to bite one finger of the giant hand. The being screeched in pain and let her go afterward, and the girl took this chance to run toward the portal to her world. Much to her horror, the portal began shrinking and shrinking and she started running as fast as she could.

_No, please! Don't close, don't close!_

Unfortunately, when the teen reached the portal it completely closed. She started punching the wall desperately. "Nooo! Please, open again! Let me in, let me in!"

Then an evil laughter resonated around the tunnel and the girl slowly turned to see from where it was coming. How she wished she hadn't done that!

Her eyes met the gaze of a strange black creature with big red eyes, who was staring at her and smiling wickedly with sharp white fangs.

Those eyes… seemed to stare directly into her soul. If look could kill, Juliet would have been deader than a dead.

The girl was trembling in fear, her eyes wide open and her teeth biting her nails. She then gathered enough courage and asked "W-who are y-you?"

The being scoffed _"AH, DO YOU REALLY THINK I'LL REVEAL MY IDENTITY TO A PATHETIC WEAK HUMAN LIKE YOU, GIRL? KEEP DREAMING!"_

She gulped hard, his tone was so full of venom and disgust.

"Bu-bu-but… what d-do you want f-from me?"

The creature's grin widened, making Juliet flinch. _"OH, I ONLY WANT YOU TO STAY QUIET WHILE YOUR PRESENCE WILL MAKE THE WHOLE PORTAL COLLAPSE, FREEING ME AND MAYBE KILLING YOU!"_

"Ah, ok… i-if it's only that, then… wait, what? K-kill me?"

Now she was more than scared. She was terrified!

"_YEEES! A NECESSARY SACRIFICE, SO I CAN FINALLY OBTAIN MY VENGEANCE! AND BESIDES I'LL DO A FAVOR TO YOUR WORLD: I'LL FREE SOME SPACE FOR SOME OTHER USELESS CREATURE!"_

"H-how… how can you b-be so c-cruel? W-what I have d-done to you?"

"_NOTHING, BUT I DON'T CARE! HUMANS LIKE YOU ARE ONLY A WASTE OF SPACE, TRASH THAT NEED TO BE ELIMINATED DEFINITIVELY!"_

"You… can't be s-serious…"

"_WELL, FAREWELL HUMAN! HAVE A NICE TRIP TO HELL!"_

The being closed the portal, imprisoning the teenager and leaving her to her horrible fate.

"Nooo! I'm too young to die! I'm only fifteen! I never had a chance to obtain my driving license! I never had a chance to find a boyfriend! I never had a chance to meet Bill Gates or Steven Spielberg! You can't let me die! Let me out! Please! Pleeeease!" begged Juliet, punching the walls of her prison. But the black creature was like deaf.

Suddenly, a strange crackling noise resonated around the portal. Juliet gulped and looked in all directions, ready for anything that was going to happen. Without warning, a good portion of the tunnel near her exploded, sending several flaming debris in her direction. She reacted quickly, shielding her face with her arms and receiving some nasty cuts and scorches all over her body. But she couldn't take the brunt of the explosion and was sent flying against the opposing wall.

SBAM!

"Waagh!" yelled the girl, falling on the floor after the impact. "I… urgh… I think I broke… unf… my back… ouch… the pain…"

She stood up, not without trouble, and checked all the injuries received. "Well, it could have been worse…"

But then the whole room filled with static and various thunderbolts made their presence.

"Why did I have to talk? Gosh!" said the girl, running around and trying to dodge the bolts as much as she could. She managed to avoid all the strikes, receiving light shocks once in a while, but was finally hit by a big thunderbolt, that froze her in place. She shrieked in pain and agony, and tried to move out of the way. But her legs didn't respond. She wailed desperately, gritting her teeth and with tears forming in her eyes, and wanted this torture to stop.

_Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP! _

She could feel her muscles spasming violently, her heart pounding crazily without control and her breathing becoming shallow and difficult. Her sight began darkening and her consciousness was slowly drifting away. The last thing she could see was the crazed look of her captor and a lightning directing in her direction. Soon after, everything turned black.

* * *

><p>"… and that's all what I can remember."<p>

The room was completely silent. She looked around, seeing what kind of reaction had everyone: some were stunned, some looked at her sympathetically, some were impossible to decipher, some seemed to not care.

Zelda approached her and started speaking. "I'm so sorry for all what happened to you. It surely had been a terrible and horrific experience!"

Juliet looked at her. "You tell me! I don't even know how I managed to survive! All those hits could have killed a whale!" retorted the teenager, showing to the princess a very pained gaze. She then sighed and buried her head in her hands, trying to not cry. "But why me? Why me?"

Master Hand hovered beside the girl and responded _"FROM WHAT YOU SAID, IT SEEMS THAT IS HAS ONLY BEEN A CAUSALITY THAT YOU HAVE BEEN THE VICTIM OF THIS ATROCIOUS ACT. THE SAME THING COULD HAVE HAPPENED TO ANY OTHER PERSON OF YOUR WORLD. YOU WERE ONLY… UNFORTUNATE."_

The teen frowned, but knew that Master Hand was probably right. "Yeah… but this sucks! That monster sucks! How could he? How could?"

She was gritting her teeth and shaking in anger, but calmed down by breathing deeply and looked at Master Hand again. "Whatever, that doesn't matter. I want to know if you can send me back at home, since I'm here only by accident. Can you?"

The giant hand hummed for a second and responded _"MAYBE. YOU HAVE TO TELL ME YOUR ORIGINAL PLANET'S NAME AND THEN I'LL SEE WHAT I CAN DO."_

Juliet nodded and thought hard. Her mind was still hazy and her headache didn't help a bit. Still she managed to remember her world and everything related to it. "I'm from… Earth… third planet of the Solar System… Milky Way… uhm, that's all, I think." said her, glancing at the hand and hoping that he could help her.

"_MH… THIS INFORMATION IS A BIT GENERIC. THERE ARE SEVERAL PLANETS WITH THE SAME REQUISITES IN THIS UNIVERSE."_

The girl cursed a little for the lack of fantasy of some game and anime creators. Why do they have to do almost everything based of the Earth?

"I'm sorry, that's all what I know!" replied the teen, sadly.

But the hand smiled (I don't know how, don't ask!) and said _"IT'S OK. THERE IS ANOTHER WAY TO KNOW FROM WHERE YOU ARE."_

This immediately took the girl's attention. "Really? How?"

"_YOU'LL SEE. R.O.B., COME OVER HERE!"_

The robot obliged and in an instant was in front of his boss.

"_EXECUTE A BIOLOGICAL SCAN OF HER BODY AND SHOW ME THE RESULTS."_

"As your order, Master Hand!"

Doctor Mario and Luigi moved aside to let the mechanical being do its work. From its eyes shot a strange blue light and the robot passed this beam all over the girl's body. She felt a strange tingling sensation, but simply ignored it. After about one minute the robot turned to Master Hand and showed the paper with the results of the analysis. The hand levitated it in front of him and started reading. Everyone in the room were looking at him in anticipation, especially Juliet. After a while, the hand turned to her.

"_JULIET."_

"Y-yes?" said the lady, starting in surprise and with her heart pounding hard. She just wanted to return home and forget every crazy thing happened to her. "Tell me! Can you send me back at home?"

After a moment on silence, the hand responded somberly _"… NO."_

Juliet's eyes widened in shock and her heart shattered in little pieces. Even the Smashers were taken aback by this answer.

"N-no? What do you mean by no?" retorted the lady, standing up instantly. She was both saddened and furious. "You… you can open portals, right? So why can't you just send me back at home? What's wrong?"

Doctor Mario immediately grabbed her arm and said "Please, stay calm! Surely there is a reason of why he can't do that. Let him speak."

Juliet wanted to reply, but decided to follow the doctor's advice and seated down. She looked down and snorted to release tension, before gazing back at the hand. "Sooo… what is the problem?"

Seeing that she had calmed down a bit, Master Hand responded _"THE MAIN PROBLEM IS… THAT YOU ARE NOT FROM THIS UNIVERSE. YOU ARE… FROM A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT REALITY."_

She was staring at him, visibly confused. "And… what does that mean?"

The hand "walked" a little and resumed _"YOU SEE… THE UNIVERSES ARE BIG PORTIONS OF SPACE THAT CONTAIN COUNTLESS PLANETS, STARS AND GALAXIES. SOME PLANETS HAVE LIFE IN THEM, WHILE SOME OTHERS HAVE NOT. THE UNIVERSES CAN ALSO HAVE PARALLEL DIMENSIONS IN THEM, THAT CAN BE AN EXACT OR ALMOST EXACT COPY OF THE MAIN UNIVERSE AND THAT ARE NEEDED FOR THE BALANCE OF THE WHOLE. REALITIES ARE BASICALLY AN UNION OF VARIOUS UNIVERSES AND DIMENSIONS, THAT KEEP EVERY THING IN BALANCE AND THAT HAVE SPECIFIC TIME AND SPACE LAWS. I CAN TELEPORT FROM AN UNIVERSE TO ANOTHER WITHOUT TROUBLES, BUT THE FORCES THAT SEPARATE TWO OR MORE REALITIES ARE TOO STRONG FOR ME."_

Every gaze was fixed on Master Hand. Some looks were incredulous and surprised. There was something, excluding Tabuu, stronger than Master Hand?

Juliet was left without words, analyzing everything that Master Hand had just said. "Let me get it clear with some metaphors… you mean that the universes are like atoms surrounded by electrons, that are the dimensions, and all of them compound the reality, like the atoms compound a molecule?"

Master Hand thought for a moment and responded _"SORT OF. IT WORKS ALMOST IN THE SAME WAY."_

"I see… but there is still some way, right? I mean… I somehow ended up here, so there is surely a way to return in my reality!" said the girl pragmatically.

Everyone nodded. Her reasoning made sense.

"_SURELY THERE IS A WAY. BUT RIGHT NOW I CAN'T DO ANYTHING."_

"Uh? And why not?"

"_WELL… IT IS POSSIBLE TO TRAVEL TO ANOTHER REALITY WHEN IT MAKES CONTACT WITH THE REALITY WHERE YOU ARE STAYING. THE COLLISION PRODUCES LARGE AMOUNTS OF ENERGY THAT OPEN VARIOUS PORTALS AND THAT CONNECT THE TWO REALITIES. BUT NOW… IT SEEMS THAT YOUR REALITY IS NOT MAKING ANY CONTACT WITH OURS, MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO TRAVEL RIGHT NOW." _

Juliet felt her mood collapsing dramatically. She was stuck there? No way… it was both a dream and a nightmare at the same time. She was along the heroes of her childhood… but at the same time she was far from her family… from her mother… from her father… from her little brother…

And besides she was terribly underpowered. They all had incredible amounts of physical and paranormal skills and resistance, she had nothing. One single Falcon or Warlock Punch could easily kill her. She shuddered at the thought.

"And… do you know when my reality will collide with this?"

_Please, tell me you know!_

But Master Hand shook himself. _"I'M AFRAID NOT. THE REALITIES ARE ALWAYS IN MOTION, YOU KNOW. BEFORE ANOTHER CONTACT CAN PASS DAYS OR MONTHS. EVEN YEARS, SOMETIMES!"_

"Y-y-y-years?" stuttered Juliet, looking crestfallen. She placed her elbows on her lap and covered her head with her hands, masking her distress. "No… no…"

"_I'M SO SORRY. UNFORTUNATELY THERE IS NO OTHER WAY. BUT I'LL MAKE EVERYTHING I CAN TO HELP YOU RETURN HOME. I PROMISE SOLEMNLY. MEANWHILE, YOU CAN STAY HERE AT THE SMASH MANSION, IF YOU WANT. THE SMASHERS WILL HELP YOU IN ANY WAY THEY CAN."_

Juliet rose her head and glanced around the room. She saw all the Smash Kids smiling at her, while some adults were giving her approval looks. The villains seemed to not care, but the girl ignored them. She could not help but smile faintly, touched by their generosity.

"Thanks… to everyone…"

"_NOW IT'S BETTER FOR YOU TO VISIT THE PLACE. LINK AND PEACH__… CAN YOU GIVE TO OUR GUEST A TOUR OF THE MANSION?"_

The princess and the swordsman nodded. "Of course, with pleasure!" said Link with a smile. He then directed his look to Juliet and asked "Do you think you can walk?"

She stood up and tested her feet. Steady. "Yes, no problem. I'm fine!"

"Good to know! Follow us, sweetie!" said Peach, in her cheerful voice.

"Sure, wait a sec…" the teen turned to Doctor Mario. "Thanks for healing me!"

The doctor smiled. "You're welcome. But Mario helped me a lot."

"Oh!" She turned to the plumber and smiled. "Thanks to you too!"

The red clad hero nodded. _"Prego, signorina!"_ ("You're welcome, milady!")

Juliet nodded and approached the Hylian and the princess. "Let's go!"

They were about to leave, when Pikachu and Kirby approached them and asked "Can we come too?"

Juliet looked at them and said "Sure, why not?"

The duo smiled and moved at her sides. The girl then turned to all the Smashers. "See you later, guys!"

The group left the room, and all the Smashers directed their looks to Master Hand.

"_THAT'S ALL, MY DEAR SMASHERS! YOU ARE ALL DISMISSED!"_

Everybody nodded and exited the infirmary, except Doctor Mario.

The hand teleported away, into his own office. Master Hand then began examining the monitor and looked various times at the video of the match of the day. There was still something bugging the hand's mind.

Crazy Hand neared him. "_HEY BIG BRO! WHAT'S THE MATTER?"_

"_I WAS ONLY THINKING ABOUT WHAT THAT GIRL… YOU KNOW, THE STRANGER… SAID ABOUT HER ABDUCTOR. DOESN'T THE DESCRIPTION OF A BLACK CREATURE WITH RED EYES, SHARP FANGS AND RENEGADED TO A DIMENSIONAL PRISON SOUND FAMILIAR TO YOU?"_

"_NOW THAT YOU'RE SAYING IT… NO."_

"_WHY I'M NOT SURPRISED?" _said the hand, chuckling a little _"BUT SERIOUSLY… I THINK THAT I KNOW WHO THE KIDNAPPER IS. I SIMPLY CAN'T PUT A FINGER IN IT. LET'S SEE: BLACK, WITH CLAWED HANDS, RED EYES, SHARP FANGS, TRAPPED IN A DIMENSIONAL PRISON…"_

Suddenly, realization hit the powerful being and horrible memories filled his mind.

"… _CRAZY, ARE YOU THINKING WHAT I AM THINKING?"_

"_YES, I LOVE KITTENS TOO!"_

Master Hand stared at his brother in disbelief and if he had a face he would have slapped himself.

"_NO! I WAS TALKING ABOUT THE BLACK MONSTER! DOESN'T HE MAKE SOMETHING CLICK IN YOUR MIND?"_

"_MH, YES… NO… MAYBE… NO… YES… MAYBE…"_

"_OK… FORGET IT, IT DOESN'T MATTER."_

The hand then opened a strange purple portal.

"_HEY, WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"_

"_I'M GOING TO REUNITE THE GODS OF THE VARIOUS WORLDS. IF THE MONSTER IS WHO I AM THINKING HE IS THEN WE'LL NEED ALL THE HELP WE CAN GET. YOU STAY HERE AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING STAY IN ORDER. GOT IT?"_

"_GOOOOOOT IT! DON'T WORRY, BRO! I'LL TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING!"_

"_GOOD! SEE YOU LATER, CRAZY!"_

And in a flash he was gone.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So here it is. The first chapter! I'm sorry if some characters are a bit OOC and if not all Smashers had had screen time, but I'll compensate for that in the next chapters. So what do you think?**

**Juliet: *growls* You won't like what I have to say…**

**Shinywolf: Aww, come on! Don't be mad…**

**Juliet: DON'T BE MAD?! You injured me both physically and psychically, almost killed me and, if all wasn't enough, took my chance to return back at home. At least you gave me a name…**

**Shinywolf: Don't worry, you are gonna like the company of all the Smashers. Just wait, ok?**

**Juliet: Grrr, fine! Oh, listen carefully readers! Don't you dare to review this wolfie. She's a psycho madwoman.**

**Shinywolf: Oh, I love you too! Well, see you next time!**

***Shinywolf***


	3. Ch 2: at your left you can see

Chapter 2: At your left you can see…

Or

Chapter 2: Let's the tour begin!

**A/N: *rock music playing* YOOH, LET'S ROCK! YOOH, YOOH, YOOH! Uh? Oh, hi there! You're still here? Wow! Or maybe you're here only by accident?**

**Juliet: Ehm, who are you talking to? There is nobody here…**

**Shinywolf: And you wonder why? You scared all the readers in the last chapter with your sudden outbursts and threats!**

**Juliet: … sorry! But how would you react if you were in a completely different planet surrounded by powerful beings that can simply crush your bones with a single finger?**

**Shinywolf: Uhm… maybe I'd pe-**

**Juliet: Please, don't complete your sentence! It was only a rhetorical question!**

**Shinywolf: Ok… well, reader or non-reader, this chapter may be quite boring since there isn't much action. But don't worry: from next chapter onwards the things will become MUCH more interesting. Or at least, this is my plan! Have a nice reading! **

**Disclaimer for smarts: I dno't own and I'm not pninlang to own any Ndetnino pdurcot in the naer fturue!**

**Disclaimer for the lazy ones: I don't own and I'm not planning to own any Nintendo product in the near future!**

* * *

><p>The group of three humans and two little creatures was moving around the mansion. Peach and Link were talking about the foundation of the mansion, happened during the first Smash Bros Tournament, but Juliet wasn't paying much attention to their conversation. Her mind was directed to her world, her family, her friends…<p>

_Mom… Dad… bro…_

She snapped out from her thoughts when she felt someone tugging her jeans. It was Kirby.

"Hey, Juliet. Are you ok?"

Peach and Link stopped their walking and turned to see the teen directly.

"Oh, yeah. It's… it's nothing! Please, keep talking about the first Smash match! It was very interesting! Don't worry, I'm fine!"

She tried to dissuade her guides from looking at her by smiling at them, but from the looks they were giving her she knew that the method wasn't working.

"You're still thinking about what Master Hand said you, right?" inquired Link.

_Sigh, busted!_

"Uh, yeah… I just can't believe that I'm not going to see my family for maybe a long time… I… I'm gonna miss them… sigh…"

Pikachu climbed up the young human, while being careful to not touch any delicate part, and after being sure that he was stable on her shoulder, he began nuzzling her cheek. She yelped in surprise, but then relaxed and let the Pokémon continue his snuggle. It was… quite comforting.

"Oh, cheer up Juliet! We know that you're sad about not being able to return to your world… but we want you to know that you can count on us. Well, I'd suggest you to not trust too much people like Wolf or Wario, but I think that you already know that."

"Yay! And we can play together, poyo! We're going to have a lot of fun!"

"Sure thing! And we can give some suggestions reciprocally… you know, some _feminine tips!_"

Juliet raised an eyebrow. "Ehm… feminine tips? That's not exactly in my area of expertise… I'm quite the classic tomboyish teenager…"

"Oh, don't worry! We can fix that! You only need some etiquette lessons and an appropriate look, and then you'll become a perfect well-mannered lady." chirped Peach joyously.

_Suuure… and then I'll begin speaking with some chic high class and archaic accent, I'll begin wearing long dresses and spike heeled shoes and I'll use my "charm" to bewitch the males and make them do whatever I want… well, the last thing is tempting… but no thanks! That's not my nature! And will never be!_

"Mh, I'll consider it…"

"Or maybe… we can teach you how to fight and defend. You don't seem to have any fighting skill…" Link pointed out.

"Of course I don't! In my world only military, wrestlers, fencers and other people like them practice the art of fighting and defense. Unnecessary violence is ferociously put down by the laws of the several states. In my life I never heard about heroes defeating or killing villains, except maybe in some History lessons or mythological stories."

"Oh, what a shame…"

"Yeah, truly a shame. But at least there are also no known maniacs that want to conquer the world or something similar. So it's not completely a bad thing!"

"But I still think that you need to learn at least how to defend yourself, in case someone or something threatens you and there isn't be any Smasher to protect you. It's highly unlikely for a similar scenario to happen, but who knows?"

Juliet simply shrugged. "Well, I can give a shot. Self-defense is a thing that everyone must know, after all. But… weren't you giving me a tour of the Smash Mansion, a while ago?"

"Oh, right! Let's continue!"

The green hero turned around and took the lead of the group, with the others following him. Juliet was looking around, trying to orient herself. At her right there were several big windows with white curtains, all of them up. She could see the mansion's outside through the transparent glass. There was a big garden with plants of any kind and a pool where various water creatures were residing. A bit far from the pool was a sort of playground with some sport tools, like baskets, nets and balls.

_I wonder what kind of sports play there… _

At her left was a light blue wall with hung a rather modern intercom and a strange square machine with something engraved: TELEPORT CHAMBER. Link and Peach stopped in front of it, and Kirby, Juliet and Pikachu, who was still on the teen's shoulder, stood beside them.

"Uh… what's that?"

"Oh, this is a Teleporting Machine. It allows anyone who touches it to automatically teleport in the Teleport Chamber, a room with various terminals connected to the various areas of the mansion. Very useful when someone has a Brawl and can't afford to reach the stage by walking or running." explained Peach.

"Wow, cool! I want one of these at home!" said Juliet, astonished.

"Why don't you try it?"

"Ehm… I dunno. Won't it hurt me?"

"Don't worry, it's completely safe! Trust me… if it doesn't hurt Red, it won't hurt you!" said Pikachu, patting the teen on her head.

"O-ok! So… I only have to touch it, right?"

"Yes. Go ahead! We'll follow you soon after." replied Link, smiling.

Juliet wasn't completely sure, but decided to trust the Smashers and touched the machine. Suddenly her and Pikachu's bodies were enveloped in a bright white light and a second later they were gone.

Another second later the girl found herself together with the Pokemon in a very large room, with several Teleporting Machines hung on the walls. She looked around her with amazed shining eyes.

"Whoa, this room is SOOO HUGE!"

"Yeah… you can imagine how much bigger this place appears to me compared to you."

"Mh… I suppose…"

She was interrupted by a bright flash coming from her back. She turned around to look at the other Smashers.

"Here we are! So.. are you ready for the tour?"

"Of course I am! What are you going to show me first?"

"Well, what about the Space-Distorter Stadium? It's where all the matches are held."

"Space… Distorter… Stadium? What's that?"

"You'll see…"

The Hylian took the lead again and guided the group to another machine, with engraved SDS. They all touched the machine and in a blink of eye they were transported on a large stadium, similar to the Midair Stadium (if you don't know, the first stage of the Subspace Emissary). Juliet could see some strange round devices around the stage and four square platforms, one per corner.

"I… don't understand. You said that all the matches are held here…"

"Yes, that's correct!" said Peach.

"But… how? Were are the stages like Final Destination or Distant Planet or Bridge of Eldin?"

"The name Space-Distorter doesn't say anything to you?"

The teen crossed her arms and looked around the place, thinking to an answer.

"Mh… well, Space-Distorter means that can distort space! So… I don't know... it can replicate pieces of worlds and compound them in a field where you fight?"

"Exactly! Do you see those round devices on the floor?"

"Yup!"

"Well, those things are called Recreaters: they have the function to manipulate matter around them and compress it in a very small area. In this way we can, like you said, replicate pieces of worlds, without having the necessity to teleport in them and without damaging them. The square platforms at the corners are Teleport Machines for the fighters and change their place according to the stage. And it doesn't matter how big it is: in this stadium you can put various kilometers in only a few meters."

Juliet was speechless. There was a limit of the things possible in this world?

"Scratch what I said before! I want one Recreater! I always have a problem with space at home and with one of these I can fix it!"

"I don't think you can afford that! Those devices are highly expensive and require a constant use of magic to recharge them!"

"Aww… too bad!" said Juliet, looking disappointed. But then remembered one question that was lingering in her mind for a long time. "Uh… I have always seen that you can use weapons and magic to fight, but I wonder… how come you don't get any cuts or other kind of injuries? And what happen when you fly out the stage?"

"Mh… that's simple. We don't get hurt during a fight thanks to the Shielding Magic: it creates a thick shield around the fighters that allow them to get hit without receiving injuries. However, for every hit received, the fighters lose a small bit of energy, depending of the strength of the attack. If the shield breaks for some reason the fighter gets teleported in the waiting room in order to avoid any problem. Regarding the second question… during a fight a magic barrier is put around the stage. If someone touches it he will lose a point or a "life" and will regain energy to continue the fighting. Obviously, if the fighter has no more lives he'll lose instantly."

"Oh! Thanks for the explanation, Princess Peach!"

"Please, call me Peach! There is no need of formalities."

"Ok, thank you Peach. Sooo… what's next?"

"It's better that you don't know. We don't want to dampen your enthusiasm!"

"Pff, if you say so… let's keep going!"

The group teleported away from the stadium into a corridor. They were standing in front of a door with written HANDS' OFFICE in golden characters.

"That's Master Hand and Crazy Hand's office. If you have some complaint, you simply come here and discuss about your problem with the two hands. I suggest you to come here only if your complaint is justified, or you'll make Master Hand angry. And trust me… he can be quite scary!" said Link.

Juliet was looking at him with wide eyes, and then grinned in a devilish way. "Link, I never expected to hear something like that from you, the bearer of the Triforce of Courage! You catch me by surprise!"

She started laughing, while the swordsman pouted and the others chuckled. "There are things that can make you faint when you see them, and Master Hand is one of those things. Now you're laughing, but when you'll see him for real… it's another story."

The teen stopped her laughter and looked at him. "Oook… I don't even want to know. Well, since we are here, why don't we greet the two hands and then resume the tour?"

The Smashers glanced at each other nervously and the teenager sweatdropped. "Err… is that a problem for you?"

The Smash Bros looked back at Juliet. "No, no, no problem! It's only that… you must be aware with Crazy Hand! He's quite… well, crazy!"

"No, duh! I never expected that!" replied the girl, putting her hands on her hips. "But don't worry! I'll be as quiet as I can and I'll leave to you all the talking. After all, you know Crazy better than me, right?"

"Well, yes…"

Link looked at the door for a brief moment before looking again at the young human. "Alright! Follow me!"

The group approached the door and the Hylian knocked at it a couple of times. "Master Hand? Crazy Hand? Can we enter?"

Silence.

"Master Hand?"

"_COOOOMING!"_

The door suddenly burst open and a giant left hand appeared in front of the group, startling the Smashers and the teenager.

"_HELLO, SMASHERS! HOW ARE YA DOING?"_

"Err… we're doing fine, Crazy! But where is Master Hand?"

"_OH, HE EXITED FOR A MOMENT. YA KNOW: BUSINESS, BUSINESS, BUSINESS… AND BUSINESS! SO I'M IN CHARGE UNTIL HIS RETURN. HAPPY?"_

The Smashers cringed at this news, but the teen was unfazed. She was staring at the hand, unsure of how to react. The left hand turned to the young lady and released a loud gasp.

"_WELL, HELLO DEAR! YOU ARE THE STRANGER THAT FELL FROM THE SKY, RIGHT?"_

"Yyyyeah… it's me…"

"_NICE TO MEET YA! I'M CRAZY HAND! AND YOU ARE?"_

"Ehm… I'm…"

The giant hand suddenly took the girl's left hand and started shaking it furiously. "… Ju-u-u-u-u-li-e-e-e-et!"

"_NICE TO MEET YOU, JU-U-U-U-U-LI-E-E-E-ET!"_

"P-p-ple-e-e-ease, ma-a-a-a-ke-e-e-e-e i-i-i-it s-s-s-sto-o-op!"

"Crazy, please! Stop your hand shaking! You're making her dizzy!" begged Peach.

The hand obeyed and released the girl. For a moment, Juliet felt the whole world spinning and her eyes going up and down. She shook her head and glared at the hand.

_Ungh… and that was an hand shaking? I wonder what he can do if he slaps or punches someone…_

"_SORRY! SOMETIMES I CAN'T CONTROL MY STRENGTH! HE EH EH! HAVE A NICE STAY, JU-U-U-U-U-LI-E-E-E-ET!"_

"Hey! I'm Juliet!"

"_OK… JULIET! HE EH EH! SORRY IF I CAN'T STAY HERE ANY LONGER, BUT I MUST SEE IF SHIRLEY LOVES JACKSON IN THE SOAP "ABOUT TOADS AND GOOMBAS"! SEE YA LATER, BUDDIES!"_

He then slammed the door hard, making the group jump in surprise. They sweatdropped and stayed silent for a moment, before Juliet spoke. "Well, that was quite…uh... interesting and quick, to say the least."

"Indeed… let's continue?"

Juliet nodded and the party left the office behind. Two flashes later, they reached a place with various tables and chairs arranged in a incomprehensible order. There was a counter with written Smash Bar and provided with different tools, like cocktail shakers and a centrifuge, and with displayed various desserts. At the counter stood a strange green bird with glasses and a pair of mustache. The Smashers approached the bird and the girl followed them closely.

"Hello, Brewster. How are you doing?"

The animal turned to see them and smiled. "Why, hello Link! I'm doing fine. And you?"

"Just fine. We had to suspend the inaugural match, but this is not a problem. Tomorrow I'm going to win!"

Pikachu and Kirby rolled their eyes. "Ah, we'll see who is going to win! You have to defeat me and Kirby first, green elf!" said the mouse, jumping off Juliet's shoulder and showing his fist.

"Yeah! Poyo! You will lose! Wait and see!" exclaimed Kirby, flailing his arms around.

The trio exchanged looks of challenge. Juliet and Peach looked at each other and the latter sighed.

"Mh, boys… always in competition for everything!" said the princess, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, surely tomorrow they will have a fantastic match! I don't want to miss it!" said the teen with a huge smile.

Brewster turned to the new voice. "Excuse me, milady. I've never seen you before. Are you a new Smasher?"

The teenager looked at the feathered creature. "Oh, no! I'm not a fighter. I'm only a guest from a faraway world."

"Oh, I see… you're the stranger appeared from nowhere during the today's match, right?"

_Sigh, it seems that now everybody knows who I am. Goodbye, privacy!_

"Yup, it's me. My name is Juliet, sir."

"I'm Brewster. Nice to meet you, Juliet." The barman snapped his feathers (somehow), obtaining the males' attention. "Do you want something to drink?"

"Oh, yeah! For me a Lon Lon Drink, please." "I'd like a Lemon Soda and a bowl of Yellow Pokéblocks." "Candy Cola. And a strawberry cake." "A Shroom Shake for me, please."

They turned to Juliet. "Do you want something?"

"Mh…" she thought for a moment, and then responded. "I'll take something simple. A strawberry milkshake, please."

"Ok… Lon Lon Drink, Lemon Soda, Yellow Pokéblocks, Candy Cola, strawberry cake, Shroom Shake and strawberry milkshake. Coming. Go and take a seat, please."

Everyone nodded and went to take a seat. They chose a circular table near the counter and looked around to see who was present in the bar. They could see a table with three people seated down: there was a boy with blond hair and blue eyes, who was wearing blue clothes with a sort of red armour, brown gloves and boots and a long yellow scarf.

Near him was another blond boy with a pair of square glasses, wearing blue-greenish clothes, a black bow and brown shoes.

The last person was a tall mustached man with brown hair and dark eyes. He was wearing a black salopette with a purple shirt underneath it and a purple cap with a rotated yellow L inside a white circle. He was fuming in anger.

"Hey, but… they're Isaac, Jeff and Waluigi, right?"

"Yes. They're assists that help you during a match if you break the item Assist Trophy. But I wonder… why is Waluigi so furious?" said Link.

"You know him. He's the same as Wario: grumpy, touchy and wicked. It's no wonder that Daisy doesn't go out with him…" replied Peach, shaking her head.

Everyone just shrugged and started talking.

***ASSISTS' TABLE***

"Gaah, I don't get it! Why didn't they accept me as a Smash Brother? I'm much more powerful than all those pipsqueaks together and still they didn't accept me! WHY?"

"Maybe because your intelligence quotient is so low that you couldn't fill the application form with some real attacks and because you still miss a decent Final Smash?" inquired Jeff.

The man extracted his racket and started swinging it, barely missing Jeff's head.

"You'd better shut up, nerd-boy! Even if they say that you have an high IQ they didn't accept you. They preferred that crybaby boy, Lucas, only because he has psychic powers."

"I admit I was shocked when they said me that I haven't been chosen as a fighter, but I recognize my lack of true abilities. Why don't you recognize your own?"

"Because I have everything: power, ability, high jumps, weapons, taunts and, most important, a lot of charm! Why didn't they accept ME?"

Isaac and Jeff looked at each other for a moment, and then again at the purple man.

"Ehm… dunno. But Waluigi, I don't get it… you're one of the strongest Assists of the tournament. Why don't you accept yourself the way you are?" said Isaac, trying to calm the man.

"That's simple, blondie! Assists are less important than Smashers! So they don't get all the attention and are easily forgotten by the audience!"

"Well, uh… maybe… if you train a bit longer (and if you start fighting according to the rules!) they _might_ accept you..." replied Isaac.

"Might? I'll train so hard that they MUST accept me! And then… I'll become rich and famous, and Daisy will begin going out with me!" said Waluigi, grinning. He then started laughing maniacally.

The blond boys sweatdropped and stared blankly at him, taking a sip of their beverages.

"Poor idiot… he has absolutely no hope!" whispered Jeff in Isaac's ear.

"I second that. But let him dream as much as he want. At least dreaming doesn't hurt, right?"

"Right." responded Jeff, taking another sip of his drink.

***GROUP'S TABLE***

"Really? Wow, I'm utterly impressed!"

"Yes! It hasn't been an easy feat, but at last I managed to defeat Giga Bowser!"

"Revenge is sweet, uh? At least you taught him a lesson… never annoy a sweet princess like you!"

"Tsk, he will never learn! Never!"

Juliet chuckled a little, while the boys were listening intently to the girls' conversation.

"I know he is not evil. He's a bad guy, but I've seen the good side of his heart. If he someday decides to leave the dark side, I'll be glad to accept him as a friend."

"I think you're too good, Peach…"

"Sorry if I interrupt you, ladies, but here I have the drinks that you have ordered."

The group turned to the voice and saw a Blue Metal Alloy holding a big tray.

"Oh, thank you!" said everyone and immediately took their own order from the robot. After that the robot returned back at work.

"Well, bon appétit guys!"

Everybody took a gulp of their own drink.

"WOW! This milkshake is delicious! I have never tasted something like that before!" Juliet's eyes were sparkling in joy and she sipped happily her cool drink.

The Smashers were smiling at the teen. It seemed like she was slowly forgetting, or at least putting aside, her problems and depression.

"This place is so super! And surely there is more about this mansion, right?"

"Right! But don't think that this place is only fun and rights! There are some rules that you must respect if you want to coexist peacefully with us." said Peach in a very serious tone.

"Ah! All roses have thorns, uh? Ok, spill it! What are those rules?"

"Rule number 1: never start a Brawl outside the designed areas, like the Stadium or the Training Room."

"Oh, don't worry! I'm not a troublemaker… most of the time."

"Rule number 2: don't use weapons outside the fights and don't abuse the use of magic or powers."

"Pff, piece of cake! I don't possess any weapon. And I'm not a sorcerer!"

"Rule number 3: don't hurt the other residents."

"How could I ever hurt you? You're Smashers, I would have no chance against you!"

"Rule number 4: people under sixteen must go to bed before 10 PM."

"No problem. I always go to bed quite early, I'm used to it."

"Rule number 5: don't kidnap girls."

At this Juliet burst out laughing.

"Ah ha ha ha! R-really? They put a rule like that? Ah ha ha ha, that's… that's hilarious!"

"Yes… it can appear ridiculous at first. But they put it after some… problems with Bowser and Ganondorf during the Melee Tournament."

"Yeah! They tried to kidnap Peach and Zelda several times. But thanks to Mario, Luigi, Young Link and my efforts we convinced Master Hand to put this rule. They keep trying, but to a lesser extent compared to the past." said the green swordsman.

"I see… but don't worry. I don't kidnap other females. I'm not a psycho!"

"Rule number 6: don't steal and don't damage the mansion or its properties."

"Ok. That's all?"

"Yes, that's all." concluded Peach.

"Mh, those rules are quite obvious. I would have respected them instinctively, even without knowing them."

"We don't doubt that, but it's right that you know them."

"Indeed, indeed. Well, since we have ended our little party, can we resume the tour?"

"Of course. Let's go!"

The Smashers stood up instantly, while the teenager had to get up slowly due to her injuries. She felt her back stinging, but tried to ignore it as much as she could. She didn't want to slow down her guides, after all. They approached the counter and Brewster turned to look at them.

"Well? Did you enjoy your drinks?"

"Yes, Brewster. The Lon Lon Drink was as good as usual. Maybe even better!" exclaimed Link.

"I'm not a critic, but I liked the Pokéblocks. They were very well mixed!" said Pikachu, nodding.

"Yay, Candy Cola and strawberry cake! I loved them, poyo!" said Kirby, happily.

"Your Shroom Shake was delicious, neither too bland nor too strong. I savored it with pleasure." said Peach with a smile.

"Oh, yeah. I really enjoyed the milkshake: creamy, sugary and flavored to perfection. If I had to give you a vote, I'd give you 11 of 10." exclaimed Juliet, giving to Brewster a thumbs-up.

"Glad that you liked them. I hope to see you soon."

"Indeed. Goodbye, Brewster!" said Link to the barman.

He then led the group to the teleport and in a flash they were gone. A flash later Juliet found herself and her guides in a place that the girl had seen during the beginning of the tour: the playground, provided with various stalls and all kind of sport tools.

_So here it is! Wow, it's quite big! I can't imagine how many people can gather in this place... but wait, there is someone else here..._

She looked intently at the other group while her companions motioned her to wait.

In the room there were some kids divided in two teams, playing a sport with bats and balls on a field with four bases. Baseball, it seemed. Or at least a variation of it.

On the one hand she could see one black haired boy, wearing a red baseball cap and a blue and yellow striped shirt, holding tightly a bat with both hands. On the other side she could see a brown haired boy, wearing red cap and shirt, and holding a ball in his right hand. There were other kids in different spots, but all gazes were focused on the two red capped boys. Tension was rising, and both kids were very concentrated, looking at each other with determination.

***FIELD***

"Come on, Red! I bet you won't be able to score any point!"

"Ah, prepare to lose then, Ness! Nobody can throw balls like me! You have no chance!"

"Really? Just wait and see!"

They both narrowed their eyes and prepared for the challenge. Red raised his arm high, while rotating slightly his waist clockwise and readying himself for the throw. Ness raised his bat over his right shoulder, looking attentively at every single movement of the Pokémon Trainer.

"Go, baseball!"

Red threw the ball with all his force and with extreme accuracy, the ball traveling through the air in a straight line and almost cutting it. All eyes were following the ball, that was moving closer and closer to the psychic kid. Tightening his grip around the bat, Ness rotated slightly and when the ball was near him he swung his wooden artifact around...

WHACK!

The impact of the two items resonated loudly around the room and the round item flew in the opposite direction from the first one. He went so far that it hit the perimeter barrier of the playground, resulting in an explosion of lights and colors.

"HOME RUN! Ah! I told you, Red!"

"Whoa..."

"We won, guys! We won! Ah ha ha! I'm the best!"

Some of the kids cheered for the result of the match, while the others had their gazes lowered in defeat. It was easy for Juliet to have an idea of who was with who, according to the reactions of everyone.

In Red's team there were a blond boy with a yellow and red striped shirt, a chimp with a red cap and shirt and a brown haired girl wearing a pink parka, while in Ness's team there were a brown haired boy with a blue parka and two boys very similar to Link but younger. One of them had catlike eyes and a more "toonish" appearance.

_Interesting... Team Warm Color: Red, Lucas, Diddy Kong and Nana. Team Cold Color: Ness, Popo, Young Link and Toon Link. Too bad Red's team has lost, I was rooting for them..._

The trainer turned to his team, apology in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, guys! Sorry if I have disappointed you!"

His teammates looked directly at him, flashing their best smiles.

"Th-that's ok, Red! Don't fell so bad! Your throw was v-very powerful! I don't think I could have done one better than yours! You did great!"

"Lucas is right! After all, you had to face Ness and you know that he is an ace with his trusty bat!"

"Yeah, don't worry! It doesn't matter that we have lost (even if I wanted so badly to prove to my brother that girls can be good at baseball too...)! It was still fun!"

Red smiled back at his friends and readjusted the brim of his cap. "Thanks, guys! You'll see... next time I'll do better and then we'll win!"

"Ah, in your dream, Red-boy! We are going to win again!"

"I wouldn't be so sure, Young, if I was you! You must never be too overconfident. Luck can turn your back at any time. You'll see..."

***JULIET'S GROUP***

Juliet, Link, Peach, Pikachu and Kirby were listening curiously to the conversation between the Smash Kids. The teenager kept looking attentively at the young heroes, amused by their competitiveness and sincere friendship. Even if they were from different worlds they didn't care about differences or origins. They simply accepted themselves the way they were, and Juliet admired that.

Link elbowed Juliet slightly, making her release a weak gasp in surprise. "Why don't you go and talk to them? You are more or less in their same age range and I think it would be useful to you to bond with coetaneous people."

"W-what? Me... and them? Together?" she looked at the Hylian briefly, before turning again to the kids. "I... I don't know... I... are you sure I can... I..."

"Mh? What's wrong? Are you afraid of them?"

She rapidly shook her head. "No, no, no! I'm not scared! I... well... have little problems to socialize with people of my age. I can be quite... the lone wolf, sometimes."

"That's another good reason to go and bond with them, because you know... nobody can live alone without other people around for much time. Even the Gods have little company around them. And trust me, in a world where evil is ready to strike, you must have some trusty allies ready to help you when needed. So go and don't worry too much! Just believe in yourself! Come on!"

Juliet crossed her arms and closed her eyes, trying to take a decision.

_Link is right. I must go and try to befriend the others Smashers if I want to survive in this world. Even if this mansion has rules made to protect the people around here, nobody can assure that the place won't be attacked by some evil forces. Heck, I hope something like that never happens... but who knows? Only time can tell. Mh... I must try, but... will they accept a weak human like me?_

"Uh... o-ok, I'll try!"

"Good to know! Kirby, why don't you accompany her? I suppose you're waiting to reunite with your friends, right?"

The pink puffball looked at him and waved his arms happily. "Of course, yes! I'll do it! Come on, Juliet! Let's go!"

He started tugging at her leg, while repeatedly bouncing on his spot.

"Whoa, what enthusiasm! I'm coming, I'm coming!"

Kirby dashed toward the other Smash Kids while the teen followed him and walked slowly, still a bit hesitant and wary.

"HI!" shouted the Dream Land hero to the others, who turned immediately to look at him.

"Yoh, Kirby! How are you doing?" shouted Ness back to him, before giving an high five when he was in front of him. The others gathered around him.

"I'm fine, thanks! I'm still accompanying Juliet around the mansion with the others, but when I'll finish I'll come back here!"

"Oh, right... Juliet..."

They all directed their gazes to the young human, who was still walking quietly. But when she saw all their looks fixed on her, she yelped and immediately stopped. She felt her confidence disappearing rather quickly, like being flushed down the drain.

_Come on, Juliet! You can do it, you can do it! Come on..._

She looked back at Link, Peach and Pikachu, trying to find some support. They smiled and nodded at the teen, preventing her to back off and making her regain some of her lost confidence.

The teen sighed and approached the other kids. When she was beside Kirby she smiled faintly to everyone, trying to be as sociable as possible. "Uh... hello, people?"

The Smash Kids looked at each other for a moment, then Toon Link grinned and neared her, before shaking the teenager's hand.

"Hi, Juliet! I'm Toon Link, but you can call me Toonie! I'm so glad to meet the girl appeared from another reality! It's not a thing that happens everyday!"

She stared at him for a moment, surprised by such directness, but she smiled fondly at him and nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Toonie!"

The Smashers smiled at her and leaned a little forward, following Toon Link's example.

"Maybe it's better that we introduce ourselves... my name is Ness and I'm a psychic kid from Onett. I've participated in every single tournament held in this mansion."

"I'm Popo, and she is my sister Nana. We are also known as the Ice Climbers, because... well, we climb icy mountains as a hobby."

"My name is Link, but they all call me Young Link, or simply Young. Nice to meet you!"

"I'm Diddy Kong, Donkey Kong's nephew and pal. I hope we can be good friends."

"I'm Red. I'm a Pokémon Trainer and I'm the champion in my world. I hope that you find this place comfortable for you."

"..."

They all turned to Lucas, who was staring at Juliet with big dark eyes. The teenager's gaze met the blond boy's stare, making him squeak in surprise and hide behind the tall Pokemon Trainer. She raised an eyebrow at his strange and unusual behavior and looked at the others in confusion.

"Come on, Lucas. Introduce yourself to our guest. Don't be shy!" said Red to his friend.

He kept staring at Juliet, almost completely immobile, while she was trying to find a way to unlock this awkward situation. She beamed her best smile and looked at him joyously. "Eh, don't worry! I don't bite or scratch! I'm not a bad girl... or at least, that what everybody always say."

When she saw that he was still staring at her and unmoving, she gave up and looked down, saddened and slightly disappointed. But then he leaned forward and approached her, while fidgeting with his fingers and looking down. When he was close enough, he looked directly in her eyes. "H-hi. I'm L-Lucas. I'm a psychic boy like Ness, but I-I'm not from Onett. I'm... uhm... from the N-Nowhere Islands. E-excuse me for my e-early reaction, If I have offended you somehow. S-sorry!"

Juliet's eyes widened in surprise and smiled at him. "Oh, that's ok! You didn't offend me, don't worry! It's a pleasure to meet you, Lucas!"

The psychic kid simply nodded and backed off a little, still looking intently at the brown-haired girl.

The teenager turned her gaze to the others, still smiling. "Well, it seems is my turn now! I'm Juliet, as you already know. I'm a simple student and I live in a little town with my mum and my bunny Lampo."

"Do you have a bunny for pet?" asked Nana, intrigued.

"Yup, Lampo Blitz, my orange rabbit with hanging ears! I love him, he's a very good friend and companion!"

She glanced for a second at the field behind the Smashers before turning again to them. "Uh... can you tell me what were you playing before our arrival? It was baseball, right?"

"Yes, we were practicing a little for an upcoming match against the Assist Kids and other people from various worlds, and we have to be ready." replied Ness, determination in his eyes.

"Interesting... in my world I'm part of a baseball team known as the Rising Bats. It's a weird name, I know, but we had it for so long that we got used to it."

"Really? And how good are you at playing baseball?"

"Err... I think I'm in the middle. I'm not the best player of my team, but I'm not even the worst!"

"I'd ask you to show your performance to us, but I don't think is a good idea right now!"

"Ehh, surely I'm not in my best shape... with all these bandages I can be easily mistaken for one of those cursed mummies of those creepy horror movies!"

"And... how are you feeling now? Are you ok?" asked Red, glancing at Juliet's bandaged body.

"Yup! I'm fine! If I can stand on my legs without external support it means that my condition is not THAT bad!"

The Smash Kids stared at the teenager with worried looks, making the teen sweatdrop.

"Hey! Don't look at me with those eyes! I'll be ok! I only need a few days for recovery and then I'll be like reborn! Really!"

"If you say so..."

"Trust me! I read dozens and dozens of medical books back at home, so I have half an idea of how a human body works. Time heals almost all wounds, you know."

"True..."

"Aaaand... tell me, what are your impressions about this place and the tournament?" asked Juliet, trying to avert the Smashers' attention from her injuries.

"Oh, I really like it! There are so many things you can do here and from this place you can travel to various worlds and dimensions. Surely this is a great place!" exclaimed Toon Link enthusiastically.

"Mh... so this mansion is like a connection point between different worlds, right?"

"Yep! It's incredible the amount of places you can visit thanks to this mansion." said Young Link, nodding.

"I can imagine it..."

"Yeah! And you have the chance to meet people from all the parts of the universe and exchange information of any kind." said Red.

"Or discover new species and animals beside your own kind, without having to read boring books." added Diddy.

"And you can try different foods! Yummy!" chirped Kirby joyously.

"Indeed. And you can compare your skills with other people and see how you can improve your own abilities or attacks. In some cases you can also learn new powers!" added Ness.

"You can also obtain various types of objects and rare items, most of them unavailable in your original world. You must see the Ninto's Mall: it has all kinds of knick-knacks and rarities."

Popo rolled his eyes. "You think just of shopping and shopping, sis?"

"Of course not! The "female shopping-fever" is only a stereotype! It's not completely true!"

"I agree with Nana. We girls aren't fixed with shops and malls and makeup and whatever! I, for example, enjoy surfing the web or playing videogames."

"Videogames? What are your favorite genres?" asked Popo, mildly intrigued. Even Red and Ness showed interest.

"Well... I love platforms and RPGs, but sometimes I play puzzle games or strategy games. It depends of my mood."

"Good to know... someday we must have a challenge to see who is the best player around here. Are you in it?"

Clenching her right fist and moving it in front of her chin, Juliet grinned at the Smash Kids and said "Ah! You bet I'm in it! Be careful, because when I touch a joystick I'm unstoppable!"

"Oh, yeah? We'll see..."

"Hey, Juliet!"

The girl turned to see Link waving his hand. "Do you want to continue the tour?"

"Oh, yeah! Wait a sec..." responded the lady, before facing again the Smash Kids. "Well, guys... I must go. I want to know what else this mansion is hiding me. I'll see you later, ok?"

The Smashers simply nodded. "That's fine for us. See you later, Juliet!" said Red with a huge smile.

"Yeah! Bye, Juliet!" said Ness.

"Don't overexert yourself. And eat bananas! They'll help with your recovery!" said Diddy.

"Eh he he... ok, I will!"

"You must tell us all things about your world later, ok?"

"Sure, Toonie. I'll be glad to tell you all I know!"

"And remember the challenge, Juliet!"

"Don't worry, Popo! I won't forget it!"

"And if you need something just ask us. We'll be glad to help!"

"Thanks for your generosity, Young! And thanks to all of you!"

"You're very welcome! See you, Juliet!" said Nana, smiling.

"Ok. Oh, before I leave... Kirby, why don't you stay here with your friends? You're not forced to guide me!"

The pink puffball looked up at her. "Really? Can I stay?"

"Of course you can! I'm not restraining you with chains or ropes, right? Thanks for your company, my friend, but I think that you must stay and play with your friends now."

"Ok! Thanks, Juliet! Be careful with the bad guys, ok?"

"Indeed, indeed... I'll be careful. Well... _hasta luego _(bye bye)!" she turned to leave, but glanced back for a moment at the Smash Kids.

"BYE!" shouted the Smashers, waving their hands. Juliet waved her own hand in response, but for a moment her eyes crossed Lucas's gaze. He was still staring at her, with slightly narrowed eyes, as if he was trying to read something beyond his reach. He didn't appear menacing or suspicious, but his behavior was slowly unnerving the young human.

_Weird... why is he still looking at me in that way? He's... sensing something with his psychic powers? If yes, what? Oh, gosh! That's... creepy!_

After a while, the blond boy smiled faintly and waved his hand timidly. That sudden change surprised the teenager, but she simply smiled back and nodded.

_Naah... what I am thinking? He's only a very shy kid. I know he is a good boy... he only needs time, that's all! No pressure needed!_

She then faced the princess, the swordsman and the Pokémon and dashed toward them.

"Uh... let's go?"

"Of course. We were only waiting for you." said Peach, taking the lead and guiding the group toward the Teleporting Machine. The teenager glanced for a second at the kids, waving her hand one last time, and then teleported away together with her team.

The teleport recompounded the girl and her companions in another big room similar to the playground, but with a mystic barrier and several Recreaters on every corner like in the Space-Distorter Stadium. There were various weights, breakable targets and punching balls around the place, among other training tools.

"Let me guess... this is the Training Room, right?"

"Correct! Here the Smashers and the Assists can train to improve their techniques, their stamina, their agility and their speed. And there is no risk of receiving injuries or wounds... the Shielding Magic and the Recreaters here work exactly like the ones of the stadium. If you are tired after a long period of training you can restore part of your energy by simply touching the barrier. Simple, no?" said Link to the young girl.

"Yeah, it's pretty simple... mh, but... the guys over there... are they Little Mac and Knuckle Joe?"

The group followed Juliet's gaze and saw two rather small figures fighting in a ring. One of them was a boy with black hair, shirt and shoes and was wearing green boxing gloves and pants, while the other was a strange creature wearing white boxing gloves and bandanna and blue clothes and shoes. They were sparring with each other by releasing several flurries of punches to the opponent while protecting against the opponent's attacks. They seemed exhausted and were huffing and puffing, but none of them wanted to give up or recover energy.

"Yup. It seems that they're training very hard. Whoever has the misfortune to face one of them during a Brawl must be really careful. They can surely pack a... punch!" said Pikachu, snickering a bit after his sentence.

"Ah, I don't doubt that!" replied Juliet, before laughing jovially together with Link and Peach. But after a while the girl felt her back stinging more than before and her legs started trembling slightly.

"Uh, guys? Can you accompany me to my room, please? I'm dead tired!"

The Smashers all directed their gazes to the teen.

"Oh, sure! You must be exhausted after all our walking... and in your actual condition! How inconsiderate of us..."

"Naah, Peach, don't worry too much! I'm quite fine, I only need some rest. Really! Don't look at me in that way!"

The fighters looked at the teen with worried eyes.

"I'll be fine. Just... take me to my room. A good sleep can do wonders for the body, you know."

"Do you want me to carry you?"

"Heck, no! I'm not THAT tired! I can still walk by myself. But thanks for your generous offer, Link! I appreciate the fact that you all care about me. Now, please, show me the way."

"...ok, follow us."

The three heroes walked toward the teleport while Juliet tried to keep their pace as much as she could. She was limping along slightly, but ignored the jolts of pain that shot through her body once in a while. Two flashes later, the girl found herself in a corridor with various doors numbered in progressive order and her guides motioned her to follow. After about thirty seconds they stopped in front of a door with engraved 33 and Juliet looked at the number intently.

"Here is your room, dear!" said Peach to the teen.

"33... well, the number 3 is my lucky number, so 33 means double luck for me! Yay!"

"To open the door you have to simply put your hand under the door knob at your right." said Link, pointing his finger at a little square "In that way you can both unlock or lock the keyhole without worry of losing a key or a magnetic card."

"Technological, safe and private... I love this combo!"

The Smashers looked at the teen, visibly concerned.

"Are you sure you are going to be ok?" asked Pikachu, analyzing the teen's body.

She turned to her companions, smiling sincerely. "Of course I'm going to be ok! Relax, you worry too much about me! I'll be fine, I'll be fine! I appreciate what you have done for me, but now I feel the need to stay in private for a while."

Her guides looked at her for a moment, glancing at the girl's expression and body. They could see that she was suffering and wanted to help more, but they simply nodded.

"Ok, if that's what you want... but if you need something simply use the intercom in your room and we'll come as fast as we can. You're one of the company now and we all have to cooperate and help each other."

"Yup, don't worry Link! If I need something I'll let you know! Promise!"

"Perfect. Well, have a nice sleep, Juliet!"

"Try to not exceed with movements or your recovery could be compromised." advised Peach.

"Indeed, I'll limit all my movements."

"Mh... I don't really know what to say... uhm... whatever! See you later, Juliet!"

"See you, Pikachu! And see you too, Link and Peach! Again, thanks for the company!"

"You're very welcome. Goodbye!"

"Bye bye!"

The teen unlocked the door and opened it. When she was half way inside the room the Smashers turned to leave. She glanced at them for a moment and waved her hand, obtaining an hand waving in response. After that she closed the door.

The room was quite big for being for a single person. There was a door leading to the bathroom on the left and beside it a quite big bed, with near it a desk with a rather modern computer, a lamp and an intercom. On the far right was a very big wardrobe, a mirror and a square window, from which she could easily see the outside even from the entrance.

_Mh... not bad. It's even bigger than my own room!_

She walked in the middle of the room and glanced at her reflection in the mirror. She gasped at the sight and neared it, looking at every single scorch, every single bandage, every single cut over her body.

"Oh my gosh! And I walked around the mansion in this state? I really resemble a mummy! And my hair is so messy! Well, at least nobody seemed to really care about my appearance..."

She then turned to the window and looked at the outside. The sky was clear blue, with various flying or levitating creatures filling the space and making air pirouettes once in a while, and the green forest was populated by some land creatures, running around happily. She could even see some Smashers, Assists, Pokemon and Field Characters. Some of them were playing, while some others were simply enjoying the weather and relaxing a bit.

"Wow! This place is so... beautiful! Ah, I have to tell to my brother about this place! I..." she immediately paused and sighed deeply. "But... b-but I can't... my family... is not here! Is not..."

She looked up at the sky, with a saddened expression on her face. "Beyond this world... beyond that sky... b-beyond this universe... there... t-there is my world... m-my family... sigh..."

Her eyes started to water and her body began shaking uncontrollably. Mixed emotions and feelings were racing in Juliet's mind, mostly sadness, loneliness and depression. A lone tear coursed across her cheek and the teen hugged herself, while sorrowful sobs were escaping from her mouth. She then wiped her face with her right hand and breathed deeply to soothe herself.

"Come on, Juliet! You have to be strong! You can't let emotions overtake you! Come on!"

She stared at the sky for a while before turning around and heading for her bed.

"Yeah, I... I really need some good rest! I think that with a fresh mind I can think a bit straighter..."

A yawn escaped from her mouth. "Definitely, I need some rest... I'm so tired..."

The teen sprawled across the bed and then shifted position several times, trying to find a comfortable and painless posture. Finally, she decided to lie prone and laid down her head on the pillow.

"I have to admit that this bed is very comfortable! So soft, so relaxing..."

Her eyes started to close and her mind was slowly drifting away. Only one thought manage to reach her consciousness before the girl fell asleep...

_Goodnight, family. See you soon. Goodnight..._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Here it is. Second chapter! YAY! I know that I took a long time for writing this chapter, but school is a pain in the… you know where! Anyway, I enjoyed writing the Assists' conversation. I don't even know from where the idea came from…**

**Juliet: Ah, lucky me, I'm still not going to school! WOHOO!**

**Shinywolf: Yeah, but you'll see what is going to happen to you next time...**

**Juliet: *sweatdrops* What are you going to do to me?**

**Shinywolf: Eh, I can't spoil anything! But there is one thing that I can say: in the next chapter I'll put the inaugural match plus another one. I'll try my best to make them interesting and enjoyable.**

**Juliet: Ooook… well, reader, we hope to see you again. Bye bye!**

**Reader: Zzzzzz…**

**Juliet: …**

***Shinywolf***


	4. Ch 3: the rough life of a fighter

Chapter 3: The rough life of a fighter

**A/N: Oh, yeah! Finally some free violence! This is going to be fun! Wahahahah!**

**Juliet: Holy cheese, Shinywolf! I never thought you were so evil!**

**Shinywolf: There are many other things that you don't know about me, my dear character! You can't even imagine how many...**

**Juliet: *sweatdrops*...**

**Shinywolf: Relax, my dear fellow! I won't hurt you... for now!**

**Juliet: *sarcastically* How reassuring...**

**Shinywolf: But look at the bright side of your situation... you can watch all the Brawls real-life! I wish I could do the same thing!**

**Juliet: Then why don't you switch place with me then? I'll be really glad if you accept!**

**Shinywolf: Naah, I think I'll pass! And besides I need to write the story of your journey. So return to the story...**

**Juliet: *growls***

**Shinywolf: ... or you won't see any cookie for the rest of the 2012!**

**Juliet: YAAAAGH! You win, you win! I'll go! *runs off***

**Shinywolf: Eh he he, see? With diplomacy you can solve everything! Well, enjoy this chapter!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own any Nintendo product, but I own ****at**** almost every Nintendo product.**

* * *

><p><em>Choices. Every single moment of every single life revolves around a choice. Every single choice produces one or more effects. Every single effect requires you to make a choice. Even from the very beginning of the universes life was made of chances and decisions. You took your own decisions.<em>

_You chose that stormy day to play that game. You chose that moment to turn on your TV and Wii. You chose to stay and see how the situation was evolving. You chose to fight back and try to survive. Your decisions produced bad effects, a series of unfortunate events, mere coincidences ended badly for you. If you had not chosen to play… if you had not chosen to turn on your devices… if you had simply run away… nothing of this would have ever happened to you… or maybe it would?_

_Maybe there was something that influenced you into doing such things. Maybe it wasn't all a coincidence that you had chosen that day and that exact moment to play. Maybe it wasn't luck that you managed to survive the portal's collapse. Maybe it wasn't a fluke that you ended in the Smash Universe. Maybe it was… destiny?_

_What do you think__,__ young human? It was case__…__ or fate? Pick your answer. There is only one. Choose, young human, choose__…__ choose… choose…_

* * *

><p>"Ungh… case… fate… one answer… choose…"<p>

The teenager was wriggling on her bed, her eyes flickering rapidly and her teeth gnashing. Suddenly her eyelids opened up and the girl immediately arose from her prone position, sitting down and looking around wildly.

"Whoa, what…"

She focused her gaze all around the room, before sighing and looking down. "… I'm still here. For a moment I thought that all what happened yesterday was only an illusion or a dream… how silly of me!"

She turned her gaze to the window and looked outside. Bright sunrays were entering in the room, showing a clear blue sky and birds and other creatures chirping and flying happily. It was indeed a beautiful day, but it didn't help much in rising Juliet's mood.

"Oh, I already miss you, family…"

She looked down again, before slapping herself on the face. "Holy cheese, Juliet! Enough sulking, moping and mourning! You're here in this world now and you must react! You can't keep thinking about the past all day and night! You have to move on! Now go!"

She stood up, stretching her arms and legs to shake off all the rusting sensation caused by hours of sleep and yawning softly. "Wow, I'm feeling fantastic! It's like I haven't been beaten up recently! Cool!"

The teen frowned, thinking about the events of the day before, especially the encounter with the dark monster. She then put a hand on her chin, reminding the strange dream had during her sleep.

_That voice… it was so strange… it seemed so real… maybe it was real… after all, in this world everything or almost everything seems to be possible. But… what did it mean by __"__case or destiny__"__? All what happened to me was only a series of coincidences or I was destined? Case or fate? Case or fate? Case or fate?_

She shook her head, squinting her eyes in deep reflection. But then she snorted and crossed her arms, looking up at the roof, as if the answer was written somewhere there.

"Ah, I don't know! My very first answer would be case, but maybe this question hides a pitfall. And why am I even bothering to solve this dilemma? I have other things that need my attention! Like…"

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

"Uh?"

The teen looked at the door, before slowly standing up and approaching it. "Yeah, who's there?"

She opened the door and looked at the person standing in front of her…

"Good morning, Juliet!"

"Hey, hello Doctor Mario! What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I'm here only for a check-up! I want to check your injuries and see if there is any improvement. Can I come in?"

"Of course! Please, enter!"

The girl moved aside to let the white medic enter inside the room. The man gestured her to seat down and she quickly obliged, while the doc stood by her side .

"So, Juliet… how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling just great! My back and limbs aren't stinging anymore and my breathing is back to normal. Even my tiredness is completely gone!"

"I'm not surprised. You slept for almost fifteen hours!"

"Fifteen? Wow, I've never slept so much! I was really pooped, then…"

"Yes, you were. When I and Luigi came here yesterday to check if you were alright we saw you sleeping so peacefully that we didn't have the heart to wake you up for dinner. We warned the others to not disturb you and to let you recover all your strength quietly."

"Oh, I see…"

She nodded to the doctor, while smiling gratefully. "Well, thanks Doc! Eh… can you tell me what time is it? I'm a little hungry…"

The mustached man looked to a small mushroom shaped clock around his wrist. "It's 7.35. The Smash Bar will be open for breakfast until 9.30 AM."

"And when the inaugural Brawl will begin? It already started?"

"Not yet. It will start at 11 AM, when there is a better chance to have some audience."

"Oh, perfect! I don't want to miss it!"

"Now… can I start my work? Please, show me your left arm."

"Ok!"

She extended her arm and looked intently at it. It was more bandaged compared to the other, maybe because during the "portal's disaster" it was nearer to the explosion and received more hits and cuts. Doctor Mario started removing the bandages from her arm while whistling a little melody, that the girl recognized instantly. The Doctor Mario theme!

_Dudu dudu dudududu, dudu dudu dudududu! Eheheh! I kinda like this theme! Very appropriate!_

One last fluid movement and the teenager's arm was free of bandages. Her eyes widened when she saw it: no cuts, no burn marks, not even a little scar! It was perfectly fine!

"Impressive, Doctor Mario! You and Mario really did a good job!"

"Well, this arm recovered completely… now we must see the rest of the body…"

"Sure! Let's check!"

They both proceeded in taking away all the rest of the medical cloth from the teen's body. Juliet removed the bandages around her right arm, while Doctor Mario took away the cloth around her waist and her legs. She glanced at her body to see if there was any trace of injury, but she found none.

"Good! You recovered perfectly!" remarked the white-clad man contentedly.

"Yeah! And so fast! I never expected that your medicines and cures would be so effective! Doctor Mario… you have my eternal respect and gratitude!"

"Eh he he! You're welcome, Juliet! But you must avoid prolonged fatigue or anything strenuous for at least three days if you want to avoid relapses."

"Ok, no problem Doc! If you say so then…"

GRUMBLE!

Doctor Mario stared at the girl with wide eyes, while she looked at him with an embarrassed and reddened face, scratching her head in shame.

"Ops! Eh he he! My little tummy is claiming for food! Eh he he… err… can we go get something to eat, please?"

"Sure, let's go! You must be really hungry!"

He turned to leave, but Juliet stopped him. "But first… can you tell me where I can get some new clothes? I don't want to go around the mansion dressed like a barbaric (even if I kinda like this style…)!"

"Oh, right! You can find some clothes of your size in the wardrobe. We put them in while you were asleep."

"Ok. And… can you wait me outside while I change my clothes?"

"Sure, I'll wait! Take your time, I'm not in a hurry fortunately."

"Thanks!"

When the doc left the room, Juliet approached the wardrobe and opened it: she found various shirts, trousers, shoes and other things of different colors and different patterns.

"Uh… now, what can I put on?"

The girl moved aside the various items while different color matches and clothes combos were racing in her mind. Suddenly, an imaginary light bulb appeared over her head and she took out her chosen clothing from the wardrobe: a black shirt with depicted a Smash Ball and with written SMASH! in red characters on the back, a pair of short brown pants with large pockets, a pair of Old West style brown boots and a lime green bandanna. She dressed up quickly and readjusted her hairstyle with a brush taken from the bathroom. She looked attentively at her aspect on the mirror and after a while nodded to herself, satisfied by her look. Then she exited the room.

"Ok, Doc, I'm ready. Let's go!"

"Uh? You have been rather fast! Peach and Zelda tend to take much more time!"

"Really? But I think that they take more time because royals have to be an example of elegance and well-mannerism in every situation, so they have to make sure that their appearance is always perfect."

"Uhm… maybe. That would explain why even Marth and Roy tend to spend a lot of time in their room in the morning…"

"Their room? You mean that they are…"

"Roommates? Yes, they share the same dorm. Room number 12, to be exact."

"Uh… prince plus prince. That makes sense… oh, the Teleporting Machine!"

The teen approached it, but near it there was a little sign with something written. "Out of order? WHAT?"

She turned to the doctor and looked at him, slightly panicked "Doctor Mario, the teleport is out of order! What are we gonna do?"

"Ehm… walk to the bar?"

"Oh… right. But how far is the Smash Bar from here?"

"Not too far! More or less five minutes by foot. And besides I prefer to move from a place to another without the use of the teleport. The overuse of it makes you lazier and chubbier, and tends to ruin and discharge the machines more often."

"Mh, I didn't consider that…"

"Listen to a doctor's advice: use those machines only if really necessary! Don't use them to move to a place that is at only a couple of meters far or you'll lose your shape."

"Ok, Doc! I promise. And besides… if I only use the teleport I won't be able to orient myself and I could get lost quite easily… I don't want those things to happen!"

"Good to know."

They kept walking silently through the corridors of the mansion until they reached the Smash Bar. Juliet could see a large shelf beside Brewster's counter, full with every kind of food and drinks. The girl's eyes began sparkling in joy and… hunger!

"Wow, it's like in the five-star hotels! Seriously, this mansion keeps surprising me!"

"Well… the Super Smash Bros Tournament is an event that happens only once every few years. This year they have done things in a very big way!"

"Don't tell me…

She looked around the bar while approaching the shelf and asked "Hey Doc, where are the other fighters? Why there is still nobody here, excluding Brewster?"

"Ah, bunch of lazy Smashers and company! They often arrive here at about 8.30. I'm quite the early bird, so I'm always the first to arrive."

"A-ah… ok, now what I am going to eat? Let's see…"

She looked intently at every single dish and delicacy, mentally drooling at the sight of all those good things.

"I'm going to take a coffee and something to eat. I'll see you at the table, ok?"

"Ok, Doc!" said her, smiling at the man. Then she began gathering some food in a plate that she was holding. When she was done, she approached the mustached medic. He had a cup of coffee, some natural yogurt, various slices of bread and some jelly.

"What did you take for breakfast?"

"I took a good American breakfast: fried egg, bacon, toast, some cookies and orange juice. Proteins, energy and vitamins all together!"

"Oh. Remember that fried food and bacon contains a lot of fats."

"Hey, it's only a breakfast! And after sleeping for fifteen hours without eating anything I can afford some caloric food!"

She took a bite of a piece of bacon, crunching it and making some crackling sounds. "Now tell me one thing, Doc! I always wondered why you and Mario are so similar. You have the same name, same height, same eyes, same hair…"

"Oh, I get the point. The matter is that I and Mario come from the same universe, but we are from two different dimensions."

"Mh, parallel dimensions?"

"Yes. We are very similar in appearance, but we have also many differences. He is an heroic plumber, I'm a pacific doctor. Even the Links come from the same universe but from different time lines and dimensions, and it's the same thing with Ness and Lucas."

"Oh, yeah, talking about Lucas… I met him yesterday, along with the other Smash Kids, but I think he has some kind of problem. He seemed very shy around me, maybe even scared… and I don't know why! He kept staring at me while I was talking with the others, as if he was trying to read something in my inside. Mind reading? I don't know! But he unnerved me a little… it's not exactly how I expected he would react around me."

"Mh, I see…

The doctor looked down at his coffee, making the liquid inside the cup swirl. "Well, Juliet… uh… it's quite complicated…"

"What, Doctor Mario?" replied the girl, looking intently at the medic and mentally begging for an answer. "What's wrong with Lucas? Please, tell me! I want to know!"

The doctor glanced for a moment at the teen, then returned his gaze to the coffee. "Do you know what happened during the Subspace Emissary Events?"

"Oh, yes! I know everything!" responded Juliet immediately, nodding furiously.

_Heck, I played "The Subspace Emissary" thousands and thousands of times! I know every single secret of the Adventure Mode and the entire story by memory!_

"So you know what happened in the Abandoned Zoo, right?"

"Yes… Porky appeared in a sort of spider-like mecha and confronted Ness and Lucas after the first destroyed the Pig King Statue with a PK Flash. After the battle, Wario appeared and tried to kidnap Ness, but after seeing that the boy was too fast for him he tried to hit Lucas with a sort of cannon. Ness shoved him out of the way… and Lucas…"

She looked down, replaying the cinematic in her mind. "Lucas… ran away…"

"Exactly."

They stayed silent for a moment, before Juliet looked at the doctor again. "And so? What does that fact have to do with Lucas's strange behavior? He thinks… that I am a sort of second Wario?"

"Oh, no! It's not that! I don't think he sees you as a bad girl!"

"So…?"

"So…"

The doc took a sip of his coffee. "… the problem is… that he is… constantly pranked heavily by the villains. Almost every day. And as a result he has developed a rather wary and bashful behavior around people he doesn't fully know."

"What, pranked?"

The girl was staring at the doctor, shocked by the news. "But… why? He's such a nice guy!"

"Ah, that's because they consider him only a useless cowardly wuss and they think they can do whatever they want with him! They only remember that he fled from the battlefield instead of trying to save Ness when Wario captured him. It seems like they have forgotten that he has risked his life along with them when all the Smashers had confronted and defeated Tabuu, saving the world from the cold Subspace."

"Then why don't you kick them out of the tournament?"

"We could do that, but think carefully… if we leave them in their respective worlds without heroes that can stop them who knows what they could do! And if some menace threatens us we'll need as many allies as possible ready to fight by our side. Every single second or bit of power is precious."

"Ok, you got a point… but can't you do something to solve this situation?"

"Well, we punish them every time they do something bad and the Smash Kids support and defend Lucas when needed, especially Ness and Red. However, it seems that it's not enough. And without Master Hand to bring the villains into a line it's going to be even worse!" concluded the man in white, shaking his head sadly. "Poor kid! He has lost so much in his life…"

"Yeah, I know…" replied Juliet, looking down and taking pity for the young psychic boy.

_Poor Lucas… he has a very rough life and those blasted villains targeted him only because he panicked once. ONCE! I know he can be brave… heck, he managed to defeat Porky and his whole Pigmask Army and to save his world together with his friends__… and Doctor Mario said that he contributed in defeating Tabuu.__ He doesn't deserve this treatment!_

Juliet scowled and crossed her arms. She hated bullies and could not stand the fact that there were mean people that love to take advantage of the defenseless or forgiving ones.

_Aaah! How I wish to have some mystical powers to teach them a lesson! Too bad that I have nothing… nothing more than my intellect and my weak body. Sigh! Too bad!_

She took a sip of her juice and fidgeted a little with her egg, looking up at the roof.

_Wow__… I'm feeling__ so__… so __awful. I… never considered them as real people. I have always seen them as simple emotionless data residing behind a simple LCD screen! I thought that I shared emotions and feelings with them when they were happy, or sad, or mad, or lonely__… but__ now I realize that I only felt fictitious, empty and temporary emotions. Gosh… I'm so__…__ coldhearted! But that's because I didn't know that they were real. Real people! Now… I must try to fix my errors. But how?_

She turned her gaze to the doctor. "Doc… tell me, is there something that I can do for Lucas? I… want to help, in any way I can."

"Uhm…

The medic looked up at the young human and put a hand on his chin. "If you really want to help, I'd suggest you to near him little by little. Don't go directly through him or you may risk to make him withdraw into himself even more."

"Mh… ok, I understand. I will be as delicate as possible. Promise!"

"Well, since you are so willing to help, all can I say is… thanks, Juliet!"

"Eh, no problem! I have to repay you somehow for taking care of me and for being so generous with me! Since I can't fight, at least I can try to cheer you up or give you some pep talk. I can be quite good at that!" said Juliet, grinning. The doctor responded to her remark with a smile.

They both restarted eating their breakfast, until…

"WOOYAHOO!"

"Waagh!" yelped both the medic and the teenager, startled by this sudden shout and almost suffocating themselves with food. They turned to see who interrupted them, coughing slightly. Then Juliet's eyes lit up.

"Yoshi?"

"Yup, it's me! Hi, Juliet! Hi, Doc!" greeted the green dinosaur, holding a big tray with a huge pile of food on it.

"Good morning, Yoshi. Can you tell us why did you shout a while ago? You made us skip a couple of heart beats!" said Doctor Mario, slightly annoyed.

"Ops, sorry! I didn't want to scare you! I only wanted to greet you, that's all! Sorry!" responded the reptile, lowering his head in embarrassment.

"Naah, that's ok! You don't have to be so sorry! But next time… don't shout, please!"

"O-ok, Juliet! Thanks!"

He glanced for a while at the table and asked "Can I stay at this table with you, if you don't mind? Please!"

Doctor Mario and Juliet looked at each other for a moment, before turning again to the dinosaur.

"Of course, Yoshi! It's not a problem for us! Right, Juliet?"

"Sure! Go ahead!"

"Oh, thank you thank you thank you!" exclaimed Yoshi, happily. He put his tray on the table and seated down, waving his tail joyously. "So, guys… what were you talking about before my arrival?"

"Ehm… about nothing, to be honest. I only asked to Doc a few questions about this place. I really like it!"

"I'm glad that you're finding yourself comfortable here. We don't want to see you sad or depressed!"

"Neither do I…" replied the girl, finishing her toast. She then picked up a cookie and bit off a piece of it.

"So Yoshi… what are the other fighters doing?"

"Oh, they're still sleeping! But from the noises that I heard while I was coming here it seems that they're going to wake up soon."

"Yeah… after all, it's 8.05 right now. And since there is the inaugural Brawl today I think they're going to come here earlier than usual."

"The inaugural match… aaah, I can't wait for it!"

"You seem very enthusiast about this fight, Juliet…" pointed out Doctor Mario, mildly amused by the girl's enthusiasm.

"Of course I am! It's the very first Brawl that I'm going to watch real-life! I'm beside myself with joy! YAY!" exclaimed the teenager, flailing her arms about.

"Eh he he! If you are so excited now, I wonder how you are going to be during the match! Brawls can be very absorbing… you can almost feel what the fighters feel!" replied Yoshi, grinning to the teen.

"Really? Cool…"

"Now excuse me, but I'm really hungry! You can keep talking, if you want. I won't disturb you!"

Yoshi then opened his mouth and shot his tongue toward the food, taking a good amount of it. He munched his breakfast a couple of times, swallowed it and repeated the process. Juliet was staring at him with wide eyes and with her jaw dropped. She had seen in some games that Yoshis are capable to swallow big amounts of food, even things bigger than them, but seeing one doing that in front of her was a completely different story.

"Holy cheese! And I thought I was hungry…" exclaimed the girl, taking a bite of her last cookie.

"Well, Yoshis have a very high metabolism compared to other beings, therefore they need to eat a humongous quantity of nourishment every day to maintain themselves in health." explained Doctor Mario to the young human, looking at the dinosaur as if what he was doing wasn't something unusual. And, from a game character's point of view, it wasn't.

"Oh, I see…" replied the teen, nodding.

"There are so many different creatures in the various parts of the universe… some that I could not have a chance to see or meet if it wasn't for this place. I even met a person from another reality!"

"Eh he he, I should say the same thing!"

"But you seem to know a lot of things about us. How do you know all those info if you come from a different reality?"

"Well… it's kinda hard to explain. I know a lot of things about you thanks to the videogames. I can control an avatar resembling you and through game experience I can gather all the info I want, from memories of the past to visions of the future."

"Really? And from where the game producers gather information to produce their games?"

"Ah, I don't know! I simply buy what they produce without questioning too much."

"Mh… interesting… so, you somehow manage to know info about us without actually knowing us?"

"It seems…"

"Fascinating case of unaware knowledge."

"Unaware knowledge? What a great oxymoron!"

"It's the best description that represents you, to my point of view."

"Yeah, maybe you're right… knowing without really knowing to know. Eh he he, funny but true!"

She looked at a window which was facing a very big garden, full of colors, flowers and life. "I wish that people from my world could see all what I am seeing…"

"Who knows? Maybe in the future people from your reality can come into this without the use of Reality Portals."

"Maybe… who knows…"

Meanwhile, Yoshi had finished his breakfast and was drinking a whole gallon of milk.

"Yoshi! This food is so good! Ah, I love the Super Smash Bros Tournament! Brewster and the Metal Alloys can prepare such delicacies!"

"I wonder who would win an "eat-all-you-can" challenge between you and Kirby…" said Juliet, grinning at the green Smasher.

_And while we're here let's put even Scooby Doo, Garfield and co…_

"Well, Kirby can be quite a tough opponent. He has an almost unlimited appetite, so I don't know if I would have some chances against him. Mh… but we should try, one day!"

"Ah, what a stupid challenge! Food is made to replenish our energy, not to be used as a sort of sport tool!"

"But Doctor Mario, as long as they waste the energy that they consume is not a problem. Right?"

"You'll need more convincing arguments if you want to persuade me, my girl!"

"Aww, come on Doc! A lot of people participate in this kind of challenges, so why can't they participate in them too? The Brawls require a huge amount of energy, after all!"

"Mh… sorry, still not convinced! Try again!"

"Aww…" sighed both the dinosaur and the teenager, shaking their heads in disappointment. The girl then neared the green reptile and whispered in his ear "Don't worry, Yoshi! When the "mad doc" won't be around here we'll organize a secret challenge between you and Kirby. But you must be ready to burn all the calories in excess! Trust me, I know some ways…"

The dinosaur nodded, grinning at the teenager and obtaining a smirk back.

"What are you planning, you two?"

"Oh… nothing. I only wanted to check where Yoshi's ear is, since it isn't visible to the naked eye. Nothing more."

"Sure, how not…" replied the doc sarcastically.

The teen looked around for a moment, before looking intently at the man. "Uh, Doc? What time is it?"

"Mh… it's 8.17. Why do you ask?"

"I want to go and explore the mansion, before the match's beginning."

"Uh? Don't you want to greet the others?" asked Yoshi, looking at the teen in curiosity.

"Ugh, the matter is… that I hate crowded places. They make me feel quite uncomfortable. I managed to resist the nervousness yesterday, but I'm still not ready to face a whole group of people (especially if they have strong or weird powers! Brrr!). Sorry."

The doctor patted the teenager's hand, smiling at her and nodding in approval. "That's ok, my girl. We won't pressure you, but you must try to overcome this problem. Ok?"

The girl smiled back at the white man. "Sure, I will. Thanks, Doctor Mario."

Yoshi tilted his head to the side, still looking curiously at the teen. He then shrugged and said "Well, take your time, Juliet. We won't fret you! Uhm… do you want me to accompany you through the mansion?"

"Uh, really? You're willing to do that? I don't want to disturb you…" asked the girl, wholly surprised by such a spontaneous offer. People in her world often demanded something back in exchange of any service, even minimal.

"Of course! It's not a problem for me, since I ended my breakfast and I don't have any Brawl today. I'm completely free!"

"…"

She crossed her arms and looked at the green dinosaur, considering his offer. She wanted to explore the place by herself, but she knew that being alone in that world would be very risky and dangerous.

_In a world where evil is ready to strike, you must have some trusty allies ready to help you when needed…_

"… ok, Yoshi. I accept your offer. Thanks!" responded the girl, nodding and smiling at the dinosaur.

"Whoopie! Let's go!"

They both stood up from their seats and looked at the doctor.

"Well, see you later Doctor Mario! And thanks for your help!"

"You're welcome, Juliet! Always available for you!"

"Goodbye, Doc! See you later!"

"See you later, my dears!"

"Bye!"

The green creature took the lead of the duo and guided the girl outside the Smash Bar. She briefly glanced at the white man and waved her hand, obtaining a hand waving in return. Then she followed the Yoshi.

"So, Juliet… there is some place that you want to see?"

"Well, I only saw the inside of the mansion. So maybe we should see the outside."

"Mh… ok, then. Let me think… mmmmmm… oh, wooyahoo! I know! You should see the Serenity Garden!"

"Uh? Serenity Garden?"

"Yes! You must see it! Let's go!"

He motioned her to follow and dashed forward.

"Hey, wait for me!" said Juliet, running after him and trying to keep his pace.

_Adventure time! Eh he he! Finally some exploration! … I know that I am strange and everything… but I can't help but wonder… what happened… to that monster?_

* * *

><p>The black creature was floating aimlessly in the empty dark space, smirking in content and enjoying his long waited freedom.<p>

"_I'M FREE! I'M FINALLY FREE! WAH AH AH AH! NOW WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, MASTER HAND AND CRAZY HAND? YOU SAID THAT I WOULD NEVER RETURN… AH, AS IF! NOW I'M FREE AND YOU'D BETTER START BEGGING FOR MERCY… THAT WILL NEVER COME! WAH AH AH AH!"_

He stretched his limbs and shook all his body, delighted by the huge amount of free space around him.

"_I WONDER WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT PATHETIC HUMAN… SURELY SHE DIED! NO HUMAN IS CAPABLE TO ENDURE A REALITY PORTAL'S EXPLOSION, ESPECIALLY A POWERLESS HUMAN LIKE HER. AND I SIMPLY DON'T CARE… A HUMAN LESS IN MY KILL LIST!"_

He traveled for a long time, trying to find the Smash World. He frowned when he could not find any world around him and growled in frustration.

"_GRRR, THOSE CURSED HANDS… THOSE CURSED POK__É_MON___… THOSE CURSED GODS… THEY DEPRIVED ME OF ALMOST ALL MY POWERS! I CAN'T EVEN LAUNCH A SIMPLE ATTACK OR DETECT ANY FORM OF LIFE! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU ALL!"_

He roared in hatred and fury, trying to gather as much power as he could. Suddenly a reddish portal opened in front of his mouth and grew steadily in size, until it was big enough to let him go through it safely.

"_WELL, AT LEAST I CAN STILL OPEN PORTALS. BUT AS MUCH AS I WANT MY VENGEANCE I CAN'T SIMPLY GO TO THE SMASH WORLD AND TRY TO DESTROY THOSE HANDS. I'M STILL TOO WEAK TO CONFRONT THEM! THEY CAN EASILY BEAT ME AND TRAP ME AGAIN IN THAT HORRIBLE PRISON! I CAN'T LET THIS THING TO HAPPENS TO ME AGAIN! I MUST TRY TO RECOVER MY ENERGY AND…"_ he paused for a moment, disgusted by what he was about to say. _"… AS MUCH AS I HATE IT, I MUST TRY TO… URGH… FIND SOME… UNGH… ALLIES!"_ he spat out the word "allies" with extreme effort and disdain. _"BUT THIS WILL BE ONLY A TEMPORARY SOLUTION. WHEN I'LL REGAIN ALL MY POWER I WON'T NEED ANY USELESS MORTAL. BUT UNTIL THEN… I MUST REST… AND I KNOW EXACTLY WHERE…"_

He then jumped inside the portal and disappeared.

* * *

><p>"So, Juliet? How is it?"<p>

"Wow… breathtaking!"

The young human was agape while looking at the mesmerizing sight in front of her eyes. They were traversing a very immense and majestic garden, filled with various kinds of flowers and plants, like Berry Trees, Fire Flowers and Burgeoning Spiderworts. She could also see some Crazee Dayzees walking and singing along with some Bub-ulbs, some Deku Scrubs relaxing under trees while fidgeting with their Deku Nuts and some Pigtunias exhaling a sort of yellowish pollen.

"Err, Yoshi? Those enemies over there… they won't attack us, right?"

The dinosaur turned to look at the young human, before following her gaze. "Oh, don't worry! Those enemies are not dangerous. They're quite docile as long as you don't disturb them."

"Ok… remember, Juliet! Don't go too close to any plant-based creature."

"While we're here, we can also go through the Pipe Maze."

"Pipe Maze? What's that?"

"The Pipe Maze is a huge place with various Warp Pipes connected to all the places of the Smash World. There are also some of them that are connected with other worlds, but only Mario and Luigi know exactly which pipe goes to which place."

"A good alternative to portals, it seems."

The duo walked quietly through the field until they reached the entrance of a place filled with several tubes emerging from the ground. They had different colors and numbers, heights and widths.

"Whoa… how many pipes!"

"Yeah, there are many… but be careful, Juliet! Stay close to me or you could get lost. This place is big and there aren't many landmarks."

"O-ok. I'll be as sticky as superglue."

They restarted walking quietly, with the teenager being very close to the dinosaur. Her eyes were darting back and forth, looking intently at every single shining tube.

…_**danger approaching… danger approaching… brace yourself for the fight… danger approaching… danger approaching…**_

"Uh?"

The girl stopped abruptly and looked around her frantically.

_W-who… who said that? Danger? What danger? Where? When?_

She turned to look again at the green reptile, but he was gone.

"Yoshi?"

She gazed around in every direction, looking for the Smasher and slowly growing nervous. "Y-Yoshi?"

When she obtained no response, she panicked and started running around, trying to find the dinosaur or at least the entrance. "YOSHI! YOSHIII! WHERE ARE YOU? YOSHIII!"

She kept running, looking for whatever landmark that could help her, but she found none.

_Oh, crud! I'm so screwed!_

She stopped for a while to get her breath back.

"Oh, God! Oh, God! Now what am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?"

The girl looked at a red Warp Pipe. "What if… I try one of those Warp Pipes? If I am lucky enough, maybe one of them can teleport me back to the mansion…"

She stared at the tube for a while, before shaking her head furiously "No, no, no, no, no! Bad idea! What if I end in some lava world, or underwater, or in some poisonous or acidic place?"

She sighed and seated down, holding her head with her hands "Well, the best thing I can do is to stay put in the same place and wait for the others to find me. There is no other choice… but I'm going to miss the inaugural match! Sigh…"

GROOOAH!

"Wagh! Who…"

She jumped in surprise and looked up. Upon the teen was a very big Deku Baba, "looking" ravenously at her with his mouth wide open.

"Uh oh…" was all what the girl managed to say before the plant-monster lunged at her. She jumped out of the way, barely missing the plant's bite.

"EEEEK!"

She stared at the monster with her eyes wide open, trembling in fear and ready to react to any attack launched by the blue and green creature. The monster roared and launched some toxic acid at the girl, who dodged quickly. It kept launching his acidic attacks, preventing the girl to run away.

"AAAAH! HELP! HELP ME!"

Juliet then tripped up and the creature immediately attempted to bite her again. "WAAAH!" yelled the teen, closing her eyes.

_It's the end! Farewell, world! ..._

"WAH!"

CRACK!

GROOOAH!

"Uh?"

Juliet opened her eyes and gasped when she saw who was standing in front of her protectively.

"Yoshi!" exclaimed the girl, happily.

"Hey, Juliet! Are you ok?" asked the dinosaur, looking at the teen in concern.

"Y-yeah… I'm fine."

The Smasher nodded and turned to see the Deku Baba, his hands turned into fists. "Don't worry, Juliet! I'll take care of this monster! Stay behind me!"

The girl nodded and backed off a little. "Be careful, Yoshi!"

The plant roared again and sprayed a toxic gas at the dinosaur. Yoshi jumped over the poisonous smoke, fluttering his feet rapidly and when he was over the monster's head he landed on top of it with a Yoshi Bomb, releasing some stars that pierced through the monster's "skin". The being screeched in pain and shook the Yoshi off its head. It then headbutted the midair Smasher on the stomach, making him cry in pain and crash on the floor.

"Oh, no! Yoshi!" cried Juliet, with a bit of worry in her voice.

The Smash Bro grunted and stood up, shaking his head furiously and growling at the plant, which had restarted its attacks. He dodged easily the acids spit by the monster and then retaliated by launching a flurry of Yoshi Eggs at it.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The plant had no time to recover from the daze caused by the attack that was hit by a series of Flutter Kicks and a full powered Egg Roll, that knocked it out cold.

The green reptile made a little victory dance when the plant retreated inside the pipe. "Ah, that will teach you to not hurt defenseless people! Yoshi!"

The Smasher then approached the girl, whom was staring at him with wide eyes.

"Juliet? Are you ok?" asked him, tilting his head in confusion.

"Ok? Whoa, I'm… I'm fantastic! You… you were great! You saved my life, Yoshi! Thank you! Thank you so much!"

She proceeded in hugging him, possessed by a huge amount of sheer joy and relief.

"Eh he he, you're welcome! Once in a while a Piranha Plant or other kinds of plant-monsters pop out from these pipes, so next time try to stay closer to me to prevent any problem with them. Ok?"

She released the dinosaur from her grip and smiled at him. "Ok, I'll stay closer, promise."

She then glanced at a big clock over a long pale and looked at the time. "Whaaa… it's already 10.48? Oh, no! We won't get in time for the inaugural Brawl!"

Yoshi looked at the clock, before turning to the human. "Are you really sure about that?"

Juliet looked at him, a bewildered expression on her face. "Do you have something in mind?"

The reptile nodded and showed his side to the girl. "Yeah, jump on! I'll take you to the stage!"

"Uh? I… I don't think is a good idea… that headbutt seemed really painful! Are you sure that…"

"Yeah, don't worry! I have done this thing with Mario, Luigi and Peach several times and in worse conditions! I won't let you fall, I promise!"

She was hesitant at first, but when she saw the Smasher smiling at her and waving his tail in expectation, she leaned forward and slowly climbed up the green dinosaur.

"O-ok! Let's go!"

"Wooyahoo! Yoshi!"

Yoshi sprinted forward, running as fast as he could, while the teen clung onto his neck. At first she was scared by all this speed, but after a while she started enjoying the ride. She even started giggling to herself.

"Hey, Yoshi, tell me! How did you find me?"

"By your scent. We Yoshis have a developed sense of smell and when I saw that you weren't beside me I followed your trace and found you, just in time to save you from that monster."

"I see… well, thanks again for rescuing me!"

"And again… you're welcome!"

* * *

><p><strong>A few minutes later…<strong>

The dinosaur stopped in front of a rather big door with engraved WAITING ROOM and opened it. When he entered inside Juliet's eyes suddenly widened: in the room there were all the Smashers, all of them waiting for something. They all turned their gazes to them when the duo entered inside the room. Juliet hopped off the dinosaur and looked nervously all around the place, feeling the looks fixed on her and her companion.

"It seems we are in time. The Brawl has not yet started, since all the Smashers are waiting for the match's beginning. I told you that we would arrive in time!"

"Y-yeah, you were right…"

The dinosaur patted the girl's back, trying to tranquilize her. "Come on, Juliet! Relax! They won't hurt you! Let's go and join them!"

She simply nodded. Yoshi approached Link and started talking to him, while Juliet walked aimlessly around the room. Suddenly someone covered her eyes.

"Hey, what…"

"Hello, Juliet! Mario and Link told me that you know a lot of things about us, so I want to check if what they say is true."

"Ooook… what do you want me to do?"

"First tell me… who am I?"

"Err… it's quite difficult to guess if you're covering my eyes."

"Eh, if I uncover them the challenge will be too easy! You can ask me some questions, if you want. I can only answer yes or no."

"Ok… uhm, do you have blond hair?"

"Nope."

"Err… blue hair?"

"Eh he he, nope!"

"Mh… brown hair?"

"Ding ding, correct!"

"Ok. And… do you have… blue eyes?"

"Mh… yup!"

"…do you fight using a… sword?"

"Nope."

"Ok… and… do you use a… shield?"

"Yes."

"…"

She thought for a moment, analyzing the information gathered and the voice of her questioner. Suddenly, she heard some kind of… flapping sound. She then gasped and smirked, putting her hands on her interrogator's hands.

"Ah, I know who you are! You're…" said her, raising her right hand and waving her index finger slightly. "… Pit!"

"That's correct!"

The Smasher uncovered the girl's eyes and she turned to see him directly. Her eyes widened and her mouth turned into a wide smile.

_Oh my gosh! Pit! Ah, if other female fans from my world were here they would be tormented by jealousy in seeing me talking to him. Eh he he!_

"Well, hello Pit! How are you doing?"

"I'm doing great, thanks! What about you? Are you ok?"

"Yup, I'm fine! My body recovered perfectly, but I can't overexert myself for a few days."

"Good to know! You made us skip some heart beats yesterday, when you appeared from thin air with all those wounds and cuts!"

"I know, and I'm sorry for scaring you!"

"Naah, we know it wasn't your fault! Thanks Palutena you're still alive!"

"Yeah, thanks God…"

"Hey, but you still have to tell me what do you know about me! I want to see what else you know!"

"Ok. You're Pit, an angel from Angel Land and leader of the army of Palutena, Goddess of Light. You saved her twice: first from Medusa, Goddess of Darkness, and then from the demon Orcos. You can shoot Light Arrows to hit your opponents, can deflect long ranged attacks with your Mirror Shield and fly for long distances with your Wings of Pegasus."

The angel was staring at her with his mouth wide open. "Whoa! You really know a lot of things about me! Maybe Snake is right… maybe you're really a spy…"

"Oh, no no no! I'm not a spy! I simply know a lot of things! Really!" replied the girl, shaking her hands in front of her in defense.

"Ahahah, don't worry! I won't hurt you! I can see that you're a good girl. "

"Ah… ok!"

She relaxed a bit and lowered her hands. She then glanced for a second at a clock present in the waiting room… 10.55. She grinned and began rubbing her hands in anticipation.

The angel smiled at her and looked at the door that led to the stadium. "What? Are you excited about the upcoming match?"

"Heck, yeah! This is the first Brawl that I'm going to watch real-life! I'm feeling so full of energy! Yay!"

"Eh he he! Me too! And after the inaugural Brawl follows the Newcomers' Brawl. I wonder if I will be chosen…"

"Wait… Newcomers' Brawl? What's that?"

"Don't you know? I thought you knew everything about us!" asked Pit, smirking at the young human.

"Hey, I know a lot of things, but I'm not omniscient! And THIS is a thing that I don't know!" replied the teen, putting her hands on her hips.

"Ok, then I'll tell you! The Newcomers' Brawl is basically a sort of presentation of the new fighters added in the Super Smash Bros rooster. Every fighter is chosen randomly by the computer and the match is held in a randomly chosen stage. The Brawl ends when there is only one Smasher standing."

"And everybody has only one life, right?"

"Yep."

"A-ah. Interesting and fast… I'm gonna like it!"

All of a sudden, the door opened and the Smashers began entering in the stadium. Mario, Link, Kirby and Pikachu however directed to the Teleporting Machines and in a second they were gone.

"Well, Juliet… let's go?"

"Mh, but… I'm coming… with you? With all you Smashers?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, err…"

She scratched her head unconsciously. "it's… well, an honor for me being with the saviors of the world… maybe too much honor… uh, maybe I should go with the other guests…. I'm not that important, after all…"

"Naah, what are you saying? You can stay with us, no problem!"

"Uh… really? But… I…"

"Listen… I can see that you admire us like idols, but we are simple "common" people! We want to be treated like equal, not like higher class people or else! Well, maybe some of us want to be respected like royals…"

He turned to Bowser and King Dedede, before looking again at the girl. "…but here in the Smash World it doesn't matter what are your origins or your appearance. We have the same rights, the same duties and the same importance. Nobody is less important than another, and that rule applies to you too."

The teen was staring at Pit, analyzing his words in her mind.

_Wow… how I wish that something like that applied to my world too… too much prejudice, xenophobia and racism… we can learn so much from these "game characters"… yeah, game characters… they can be more human than us… or crazier than us… or madder than us… depends._

"All men are equal before the law…"

She nodded and smiled at the angel.

"Now that we got that clear, shall we go?"

"Sure! Let's go!"

And both the human and the winged warrior entered inside the stadium.

* * *

><p>"WEEEEEELCOME TO THE NEW SUPER SMASH BROS TOURNAMEEEEEEEEENT! ARE YOU READY TO BRAAAAAAAAAWL?"<p>

Cheers and shouts could be heard all around the stadium. People from all the parts of the universe were gathered in the same place to watch the very first Brawl of the third Super Smash Bros tournament.

"WOHOO! SURE WE ARE READY! LET'S BRAWL! YOOOH!"

"Juliet, you don't need to shout…"

"Ops, sorry Pit! I think excitement overtook me. Eh he he!" said the teen, scratching her head sheepishly.

The angel rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Pff, mortals…"

"Aww, come on! I know you're mentally shouting the same thing, more or less!"

"Nooo, what makes you think so?"

"Ah, dunno… maybe the fact that you're grinning like a child in a candy or videogames shop?"

"Who? Me? The captain of Palutena's bodyguards? Naah!"

Juliet giggled a little, before smirking at the white angel in amusement.

_Sure, how not…_

"Hey, look! There are two available seats. Let's take them before someone else beat us to the draw!"

"Ok, let's go!"

The winged hero and the teenager walked toward the chairs, while glancing once in a while at the stadium in order to not lose a single moment of the upcoming match. When they reached the spot the angel seated near Sonic, while the teen was between the white clad hero and a vulpine character.

"Hello, Juliet!"

"Fox McCloud! Nice to meet you!"

"It's a pleasure to meet you too! How are you feeling?"

"You all ask me the same question… but relax, I'm fine! No wounds, no scorches, no pain!"

"Glad to hear that! You know… you made us worry greatly yesterday. Heck, even guys like Wolf and Bowser were left in suspense! And considering their characters is a great feat!"

"Yeah, I can imagine… but I didn't expect to cause all this ruckus! I don't want to be a burden to anyone!"

"Don't worry, Juliet! You're not a burden to us! You're a… simple surprise guest."

"A simple forced surprise guest…" muttered sadly the teen to herself, looking down and fidgeting with her fingers.

"…Juliet, we'll make whatever we can to make you return home. Maybe I and my team can find some portals during one of our space patrols. If we find something interesting we'll let you know, ok?" said Fox, patting the girl on the back. She looked at him for a moment, her interest suddenly roused, before smiling.

"Well, thank you! I really appreciate that!"

"Hey, I want to help too! I still don't know how, but I'll help! You'll see!"

"Oh. _Arigato_, Pit!"

"Shhh, can you stay quiet? The match is about to begin!"

Pit, Juliet and Fox turned to the voice behind them. It was King Dedede.

"Ops, sorry Dedede! We didn't want to disturb you! Our apologies!" said Pit to the blue penguin, while nodding in respect.

"Yeah, sorry King Dedede!" replied Juliet, scratching her head sheepishly.

"Since you have apologized so politely I'll forgive you. But you'd better stay quiet from now onward, ok?"

"O-ok. You're so magnanimous, King Dedede."

"I know that, girl. I know that." said the king, while grinning to himself.

The trio turned their looks toward the stadium and the young human smirked. Finally… it was time! The challenge was about to begin, wahoo!

"_ARE YOU READY? YES? YOU ARE? THEN IT'S TIME TO BRAAAAWL! LET'S GREET THE FIRST CHALLENGER: THE MOST FAMOUS HERO OF THE MUSHROOM KINGDOM, THE ITALIAN PLUMBER, THE FIERY RED CLAD MAN THAT NEVER GIVE UP! GIVE A WARM WELCOME TO THE GREAT… MARIO!"_

A green pipe emerged from the ground and Mario jumped out of it with his raised fist. When he landed on the floor he took off his hat and twirled around, before putting it back on his head.

"Oh, yeah!"

"_AND NOW, IT'S TIME TO INTRODUCE THE SECOND CHALLENGER: THE HERO OF TIME, BEARER OF THE TRIFORCE OF COURAGE AND MASTER SWORD, GREAT ARCHER__,__ BOMB THROWER AND WEREWOLF! HERE HE IS TO YOU… LINK!"_

The hero appeared in a bright light and looked intently at Mario. He unsheathed his sword, slashing the air a couple of times before sheathing it again.

"Eyahh!"

"_HERE IT COMES THE THIRD CHALLENGER: DIRECTLY FROM DREAM LAND, THE PINK VACUUM, THE QUICK-CHANGE ARTIST AND IMITATOR, THE INSATIABLE PUFFBALL! SAY WELCOME TO… KIRBY!"_

Riding on a Warp Star, Kirby descended on the stadium and jumped out of it, making it crash and explode. He then turned to the audience and waved his arms rapidly.

"HIII!"

"_AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, THE FOURTH CHALLENGER: THE LITTLE "THUNDER-TAILED" MOUSE, THE ___POK__É_MON__ CAPABLE TO EVOKE THUNDERS FROM THE SKY, THE REPRESENTATIVE OF KANTO AND THE WHOLE ____POK__É__WORLD! DO A ROUND OF APPLAUSE TO… PIKACHU!"_

A small red and white ball appeared in the stadium and suddenly burst open, releasing Pikachu in a shower of sparkles and white light. He then generated from his cheeks some electric rings that surrounded him for a brief moment.

"Piiiiiii!"

"_FINAL DESTINATION, FIVE MINUTES, NO ITEMS! SMASHERS, GET READY FOR THE FIGHT!"_

The Smashers prepared themselves for the Brawl, staring at each other in anticipation. "I will win!"

"_3… 2… 1… GO!"_

Pikachu started immediately his assault with a blazingly fast Quick Attack, heading toward the others. Link and Mario dodged the attack by sidestepping and jumping, but Kirby wasn't fast enough and the attack connected with him with a loud SBAM!

"Poyo!" cried Kirby, feeling his energy being slowly drained after the attack. Link took this chance to throw a bomb at the two little creatures before they had the opportunity to disconnect one another. "Uh oh!"

BOOM!

Being the light creatures they are, the explosion sent them flying. Kirby recovered quickly and floated back to the ground, while Pikachu flailed wildly his paws and tail trying to balance himself. "Why I'm not an Emolga? Why?" He still managed to land on the floor safely, and released a breath of relief.

Meanwhile, Mario started throwing various punches and kicks at Link, weakening him slowly and steadily. The green clad hero retaliated with a fast sword swipe and a couple of slashes, before receiving a fiery Smash punch directly in the face. Link staggered a bit after the attack, feeling a little dazed. Mario lunged at him with another fiery punch, but was blocked by Kirby's Stone attack, that hit him directly on the head.

STUMP!

"Owch!" yelped Mario, while little stars began swirling around him. He shook his head to recover from his confusion and proceeded in attacking the pink hero.

***AUDIENCE***

Juliet stiffened at the sight of Stone Kirby falling on top of Mario's head. It seemed really painful!

"Urgh! That would hurt… a lot, if it wasn't for the Shielding Magic! "

"Yes, it would! Try receiving a ton of metal on your head and then tell me how it is!" responded Fox, glancing for a second at the girl before looking again at the match.

"Ah, no thanks! I don't want to break my skull and reduce my brain into gray matter's pulp!" replied Juliet, shuddering at the thought of receiving a similar attack. Unthinkable!

"Well, if you want to avoid falling heavy items you can put on an helmet. In that way your head will be safer!" replied Pit, smiling at the teen and waving his right hand's index finger.

"Mh, good idea! I'll think about that…" said the girl, putting her hand over her chin and nodding.

***STADIUM***

Mario and Kirby were hitting each other with various punches and kicks, trying to weaken their respective opponent as much as they could. Meanwhile Pikachu, seeing that nobody was paying much attention to him, gathered enough energy for a full powered Skull Bash and readied himself for the launch.

"Take… THAT!"

The Pokémon launched himself toward the sparring duo at full speed. The yellow mouse collided with the red plumber, who collided with the pink puffball, who collided with Link. "Ah, gotcha!" said Pikachu, while laughing to himself. But was then hit by a fireball and an arrow, courtesy of Mario and Link.

While the Italian and the Hylian heroes concentrated their attacks toward the electric rodent, Kirby extracted his hammer and swung his wooden weapon around, striking the two humans in their backs and sending them flying.

***AUDIENCE***

"Ah ha ha! And that is how Kirby use a hammer? That's how to use one!" said King Dedede, raising his hammer high.

"Uh?" said Juliet, turning slightly her head to see the blue penguin lowering his hammer toward the floor. When the big item hit the ground it created a small shock wave that sent her flying.

"Eeeek!" cried the teen, flailing her arms furiously. She then started falling and ended up on Pit's lap, making him jump in surprise. "Uh… hello Pit?" said the human, blushing and waving her right hand timidly. She then glared at the king penguin, along with Pit and Fox.

"Ops… sorry! I think enthusiasm caught me…" was all what the Smasher said, sweatdropping and scratching his head nervously.

"That's… okaaay! At least you didn't hurt me…" muttered Juliet, narrowing her eyes and shaking her head. She then glanced at her seat… which had been destroyed by the powerful attack of the Dream Land king. "Err, Pit? Do you mind if I stay with you for a while? Eh he he…"

The angel rolled his eyes. "Mh, I don't mind too much… I suppose."

"Sheez, thank you!"

Sonic started laughing. "Oooh, you're sooo cute together! Ah ha ha!"

"Oh, shut up!" said the two mentioned people, before redirecting their gazes toward the arena.

***STADIUM***

Mario and Link engaged in an aerial battle. The plumber had a greater time fighting in midair, mainly because he wasn't carrying any weaponry, excluding F.L.U.D.D.. The Hero of Time tried to counter-attack with a Spin Attack, but was blocked by a Mario Tornado. The Italian hero then Meteor Smashed the blond boy, making him fall on the floor "painfully".

Meanwhile, Pikachu had been inhaled and spit up by Kirby, losing a bit of energy and making the Dream Land hero gain electric abilities. "Take that, Pikachu! Thunder Jolt!" shouted Kirby, sending a ball of electricity that bounced on the floor several times. The Pokémon retaliated by sending a Thunder Jolt toward the pink puffball, canceling the attack of the other Smasher.

"Ah, try again Kirby!" replied the electric creature, before directing toward the other with a Quick Attack.

Link threw a bomb at the red plumber, that exploded upon impact, and then shot various arrows toward the red clad hero. Mario managed to deflect some arrows thanks to his cape, but various attacks managed to reach the red hero's barrier, making him lose a good chunk of energy.

Kirby used his Final Cutter ability to send a powerful shock wave toward Pikachu, but the Pokémon jumped over the attack and hit the puffball with a fast electrically charged tail whack. Kirby grabbed the tail and punched the mouse several times before throwing him toward the other fighters. He then glanced for a moment at the monitor of the stadium. Only one minute left. "I have to knock out the others before the time limit or we'll end in a Sudden Death match! I must act fast, before they can beat me!" said the hero, dashing toward the others.

Pikachu collided with Link and released various volts of electricity upon impact. The green clad hero shrieked, feeling his energy being drained rapidly, and shook the mouse off . Before he could slash him, the Hylian was hit by a Super Jump Punch from Mario, that sent him flying and collide with the stage's barrier. "Oh, no!"

He then vanished in a flash of light.

"_LINK'S OUT!"_

"One out! Oh, yeah!" said Mario, satisfied by his little victory. But before he could turn around he was hit by two Thunder Jolts, that stunned him for a brief moment, and by a medium charged Skull Bash. He could not rebalance himself that was then hit by Kirby's hammer, that sent him flying toward the barrier.

"Ouff!" was all what he could say, before the barrier made him vanish.

"_MARIO'S OUT!"_

Kirby made a little dance and then faced the last opponent. Pikachu stared at the puffball, tensing and readying himself for the last fight. Both fighters were battered by the Brawl and were panting heavily. They both glanced at the clock and saw that there were only thirty seconds left. Pikachu then decided to attack and sprinted toward Kirby with a Quick Attack. The Dream Land hero shot a Thunder Jolt, but the Pokémon dodged it easily, thanks to the momentum of his attack. He collided with the pink puffball, making him stagger for a moment, but was then hit by a rapid Stone attack, that sent him flying upward. But the rodent didn't want to lose so easily and summoned a Thunder from the sky, striking Kirby and paralyzing him for a while. He then used another Quick Attack to strike him while he was dazed, but the puffball recovered quickly and lunged at him with his trusty hammer. The two attacks collided and…

SBAM!

"Aaah!" and in a flash of light one of the Smashers vanished.

"_GAME! AND THE WINNER IS…"_

[CLIFFHANGER! CLIFFHANGER! CLIFFHANGER!... naah, don't worry! I'll tell you!]

The last fighter landed on the floor and smiled at the crowd, waving his arm.

"…_KIRBY!"_

"Yay! I won, I won, I won!"

"_CONGRATULATIONS, KIRBY!"_

***AUDIENCE***

"Wow, that was so… wow! Indescribable! Incredible! Amazing! Wahoo!" shouted Juliet, her enthusiasm overflowing and her hands pumping in the air.

"Yeah, that was so super!" replied Pit, grinning at the young human.

"Hey, get it easy kids! This is a thing that happens quite often here! After all I have attended every single Super Smash Bros tournament!"

"I know that, Fox! But that was so… wow!" responded Juliet, smiling and giggling in amusement.

"Eh he he, don't tell me…"

"Bah, so that kid has won? Bah, I can beat him with an arm tied behind my back!"

"Are you really sure, King Dedede? We'll see that in a Brawl!" replied Fox, looking at him.

"Hey, don't forget who saved who from the Subspace!"

"But even Kirby helped in rescuing us!"

"Yeah, thanks to my medal!"

"Shhh, Crazy is speaking again! Let us listen, please!" said Juliet, putting her index finger in front of her mouth.

"Oh, right! Now there is the Newcomers' Brawl! Let's hear who is going to fight!"

They all turned to the stadium, their attention focused on the Hand's voice.

"_NOOOW… IT'S TIME FOR THE NEWCOMERS' BRAWL! ARE YOU READY?"_

"Yeaaaah!" "Eeeeeh!" "Uuuuuh!" "Suuure!"

"_SO YOU'RE READY? GOOOD! LET THE COMPUTER CHOOSE THE FIGHTERS!"_

On the screen the photos of the various newcomers appeared and a light started circling around them. The whole audience was staring at the screen, waiting the results in anticipation.

"_THE CHOSEN SMASHERS FOR THE BRAWL ARE…"_

Gasp! Who? Who?

"_IKE!"_

The mercenary stood up, raising his sword Ragnell up high. "Time for battle!"

"_AND… SNAKE!"_

The spy crossed his arms and snorted. "…fine."

"_AND… R.O.B.!"_

The robot raised its mechanical arms and rotated slightly. "As your orders, master."

"_AND THE LAST FIGHTER IS… PIT!"_

"Wow, cool! I have been chosen!" shouted the angel, raising his arms and waving them enthusiastically.

"Whoa, Pit! You seem very excited, my friend!" replied Juliet, smiling at him.

"I am! Can you, please, stand up?"

"Oh… sure!" said the teen, moving aside to let the winged hero stand up.

"Aww, too bad that the computer didn't choose me!"

"Don't worry, Sonic! You'll get your chance, sooner or later! Just wait and see!" replied Pit, giving him a warm smile and a thumbs-up. Sonic gave him a victory sign back.

"_NOW, THE NAMED FIGHTERS ARE INVITED TO GO TO THE WAITING ROOM. AFTER A FIVE MINUTES PAUSE WE'LL START THE NEW MATCH. DON'T CHANGE CHANNEL OR DON'T MOVE FROM YOUR SEATS! WE'LL BE BACK SOON!"_

"Well, I gotta go!"

"Good luck, Pit!" "Yeah, good luck pal!" "Break a leg, kid!" cheered Juliet, Sonic and Fox respectively.

"Thanks, guys! See you later!"

And the angel ran toward the waiting room.

Juliet seated down in the angel's seat and glanced at the stadium and at screen, waiting for the next match. Only five minutes. Only five.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wahoo, finally! I did it! I did it! Ah ha ha ha!**

**Juliet: At last! Why did you take so long?**

**Shinywolf: Oh, excuse me if I have a life outside here, my ****"dear" character!**

**Juliet: *grumbles something incoherently***

**Shinywolf: Well, reader, I hope you enjoyed this looong chapter. And please, give me your opinion about the fight scene. It was bad? Good? Bagood? Gobad? And if you have some tips about how to improve it or how to improve my writing let me know! Remember… translating from Italian to English can be a bit difficult sometimes.**

**Juliet: All excuses! You can be better than you think!**

**Shinywolf: Really?**

**Juliet: No.**

**Shinywolf: … *sarcastically* thanks a lot.**

**Juliet: You're welcome. But what about the second fight?**

**Shinywolf: Well, I decided to divide this chapter in two halves. An extremely long chapter can be quite boring and I'll put the battle in the next half. And in that way, I'll obtain a little more time to think how to make the next Brawl.**

**Juliet: If you say so… you're the authoress, after all. Well, see you next time, reader!**

***Shinywolf***


	5. Ch 4: the rough life of a fighter part 2

Chapter 4: The rough life of a fighter, part 2

**A/N: So here it is, after so long… the second part of "The rough life of a fighter". It's time for the Newcomers' Brawl… and something else.**

**Juliet: Really? What?**

**Shinywolf: Well… read and check!**

**Juliet: Aww… please, tell us!**

**Shinywolf: I'll give you only a little tip… beware of the Fs!**

**Juliet: Uh? Are you giving us marks or what?**

**Shinywolf: Ehhh… sorry, I can't tell you! Please, Juliet, return to the story! *throws a cookie inside a portal***

**Juliet: YAY, COOKIEEEE! *jumps inside the portal***

**Shinywolf: *smirks***

**DISCLAIMER: …still not owning any Nintendo product, but I'm working on it! *evil grin***

* * *

><p>Ike was walking briskly toward the waiting room, as commanded by Crazy Hand, when he heard someone shouting his name from behind him. "Uh?" muttered him, turning to the voice.<p>

"Ike! Hey, Ike! Wait!"

"Yoh, Pit! Howdy there!"

The angel neared him, grinning almost like a Cheshire cat. "So Ike… it seems that we are going to fight each other, uh?"

"Yeah, we are! I hope you are prepared to receive a good beating, Feather-kid, because I won't go easy with you!" said the mercenary, cracking his knuckles.

"Ah ha ha! We'll see who is going to receive a beating today, Black Bandanna!" replied the angel, showing his fists.

The warriors exchanged looks of challenge, their eyes showing their determination and their desire for a fight, when they heard someone approaching them, making some metallic sounds. The two fighters rotated slightly to look directly at the source of the noise, and they saw R.O.B. and Snake walking toward them.

"Hey! R.O.B., Snake! Are you ready for the fight?" greeted Pit, smiling at the duo.

"This unit is in full of its combative functions, Master Pit, and is prepared to display its performance to the other people in the stadium."

"Ok… and what about you, Snake? Are you ready?"

"…you already know the answer, kid." responded plainly the spy, diverting his attention from the others.

The angel stared at him for a moment and then shrugged. "Ok, so you're ready too. Shall we go to the waiting room?"

"Sure. Let's go!" replied Ike with a nod.

The foursome resumed their walking, directed toward the above-mentioned room, with Snake moving slowly behind them and looking at something. Pit noticed his unusual behavior and approached him.

"Hey Snake… what are you looking at?"

"It's none of your business." responded dryly the spy, before turning his look ahead. The angel looked at him quizzically, wondering what was going through the man's mind, but decided to not delve deeper into the matter. However, after a little while, the spy directed his look toward the winged warrior. "...I have some questions for you, kid. I hope you can give me some answers."

"Uh? Oh, sure! I'll be glad to respond to all your questions! Go ahead!"

"Well, kid… if you really are an angel it must be difficult for you to lie. Tell me what you know about the… outsider."

"Who? Juliet? Oh, she's a really nice and polite person. But there is one thing that creeps me out a bit…."

"Really? What?"

"Well, she knows a lot of things about me. She even knows some details that I have never talked about to anyone, except to the registered people of the tournament. And it seems that she has general information about all of us."

"Mh…"

"But she's not like you're thinking she is, Snake. She deeply admires us and I can tell that she won't do any harm to anybody. She has a good heart, trust me!"

"Maybe… nevertheless I'll keep an eye on her! You never know!"

And with that the spy quickened his pace, distancing himself from the angel and the other Smashers, which looked at him with puzzled expressions. Ike then neared Pit. "Is there something wrong?"

"Oh, no… nothing. But we'd better be careful with Snake. He still distrusts Juliet, even after Lucario's Aura reading and my own opinion about her."

"Hey, we're talking about Snake, after all. He still thinks that you're a sort of mutant!"

"Ah, don't remind me that! As much as I try to convince him that I'm a real angel he doesn't believe me! He's so pigheaded, as stubborn as a mule! All his IQ of 180 and Codec for nothing!"

"Just give him time. When he'll know you better maybe he'll change idea about you and Juliet and the others."

"Mh, maybe… we'll see…"

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile, in the Waiting Room…<strong>

"Aaah! I can't believe that I have been the first fighter to be knocked out! Unbelievable!"

"Eh, Link! We told you yesterday that you would lose! Call it karma, or premonition, or tough luck! Eh he he!"

"I wouldn't laugh if I were you, Pikachu! You lost too!"

"True… but at least I endured until the very end! Anyway…"

The Pokémon turned his gaze toward the pink puffball beside him. "Congratulations for your victory, Kirby! You did great!"

"Thank you, poyo! I trained hard with Meta Knight for this tournament. I won't lose so easily, poyo!"

"Well, he trained you well. Those hammer whacks were really powerful, and you know that I'm a true expert when talking about hammers and anything related to them."

"We already know that, Mario. But seriously… I expected a better performance from you. You lost quite easily today!"

"Yeah, maybe I dropped my guard too quickly! What was I thinking? And besides I sustained a lot of damage during the match. Your swipes and attacks are really fast and difficult to block, Link!"

"I'm not called an hero for nothing!"

"Surely not…" replied the red plumber, looking at the green clad hero and chuckling a little. He then looked at the chosen fighters for the Newcomers' Brawl, which were just entering in the room, and greeted them. "Welcome, friends! So… are you ready for the fight?"

Pit smiled at the mustached man and nodded. "Yes, Mario! I'm always ready!"

"Yeah, me too! I'll show you what I can do!"

"Combative functions… check! Offensive and defensive strategies… check! Crowd-entertaining program… check!"

"…ready."

"That's the spirit! Remember, friends… it's normal to be tense or thrilled during an official match, but don't let emotions overcome you. Try to ignore the crowd as much as you can and stay always focused on the fight. This is the key for a perfect Brawl."

"Ok, Mario!"

"Yes, Sir!"

"The advice has been properly stored in the system."

"…fine."

"Good! Now go and do your best!"

Pit, Ike, R.O.B. and Snake nodded and then headed toward the Teleporting Machines, disappearing in a flash, while the four veteran Smashers went to take a seat in the stadium. It was almost time.

* * *

><p><strong>In the meantime, at the stadium...<strong>

"… _and this service has been brought to you by Konam Inc." _

"_Konam Inc. … the perfect weapon for the perfect man."_

Juliet was staring at the big screen, listening intently to the advertising and waiting patiently the start of the Newcomers' Brawl. It wouldn't take too long.

"Well, Juliet… what do you think about the tournament? Are you enjoying it?"

"Uh?"

She rapidly turned to the speaker at her right. "Oh, sorry Sonic! Did you say something?"

"Mh… what where you doing? Where you daydreaming?"

"Not really. I was only listening to the publicity. I didn't know you had so many sponsors!"

"Yeah! Odnet Nin Ltd, Saeg Enterprise and Konam Inc. are the three companies that make the bigger financial contribution to the Super Smash Bros Tournament. There are some rumors about other companies that want to join the whole Smash business with a view to a potential fourth tournament, but nothing is confirmed yet."

"Gosh! You're still doing the third tournament and you're already thinking about the fourth championship? You're a step ahead!"

"Eh, what can I say? People seem to love violent shows. And the Super Smash Bros Tournaments are both violent and safe. The perfect combo."

"It seems…"

"And what do you think about the Brawls? Don't you want to become a Smasher?"

"Err… no! My body is not suited for fighting and I don't possess any special ability or power. Link told me that he's going to teach me some self-defense, but that's all! I don't want enemies or troubles!"

"Mh, that's ok. We won't force you to do something that you don't want to do!"

"Well, that's reassuring!"

"_WELCOME BACK TO THE SUPER SMASH BROS BRAWL TOURNAMENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! IT'S TIME FOR THE NEWCOMERS' BRAWL! ARE YOU READY FOR SOME ACTION?"_

"Eeeeeeh!" "Yeeeeeah!" "Uuuuuuh!"

"Aaah, Sonic! It's beginning! It's finally beginning! I'm feeling my emotion skyrocketing! Yay!" exclaimed Juliet, before giggling to herself.

"Eh he he! I would have never guessed that… well, let's see how my "colleagues" will handle the fight!"

"Oh, yeah! Let's see!"

And both the teen and the hedgehog turned their attention to the arena.

"_THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR! LET ME INTRODUCE THE SMASHERS TO PEOPLE THAT DON'T YET KNOW THEM. FIRST CHALLENGER: LEADER OF THE GREIL MERCENARIES, SAVIOR OF PRINCESS ELINCIA AND THE CRIMEA KINGDOM AND WIELDER OF THE POWERFUL SWORD RAGNELL. SAY WELCOME TO THE MIGHTY… IKE!"_

A strange glowing emblem appeared on the floor and Ike appeared in a bright red light. The Smasher then swung his sword above his head and after that he held it out in front of him, charging energy and readying himself for the fight.

"Prepare yourself!"

"_NOW FOR THE SECOND CHALLENGER: THE LEGENDARY MERCENARY, SOLDIER AND CLONE, THE MAN WHO MAKES THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE, POSSESSOR OF AN IQ OF 180 AND CAPABLE TO SPEAK FLUENTLY SIX DIFFERENT LANGUAGES. MEET THE GREAT… SNAKE!"_

Some sparks made their presence on the battlefield and Snake appeared in the middle of the electric explosion. He then glared at the other warrior and went in his defensive stance.

"It's showtime!"

"_WHAT?! THEY ENDED THE LEMON ICE CREAM? NOOO! WHAT AM I GOING TO EAT NOW? I DON'T WANT A SIMPLE HOT-DOG! I WANT MY ICE CREEEEAM! I GOING TO BREAK THIS STUDIO, BURN THE CARPETS, SING TO AN OPERA, STROKE A KITTEN AND… MH? WHAT ARE YOU SAYING NOW? I'M ON THE AIR? THERE IS A BRAWL ONGOING?"_

An awkward silence followed.

"…_OH, RIGHT! THE BRAWL! I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT IT! EH HE HE!"_

Every single person in the stadium sweatdropped at Crazy Hand's antics and after a while some members of the audience burst out laughing, Juliet included. Ike and Snake groaned and crossed their arms, while shaking their heads in annoyance.

"Come on, announce the other Smashers already, will you?" muttered Snake lowly, glaring at the announcer's cabin.

"_SORRY ABOUT MY LITTLE RANTING AND RAVING! LET'S RESUME! EHM… WHERE ARE THOSE PAPERS? JUST… WAIT A SEC… ERR… AH, FOUND THEM!"_

The hand cleared his "throat" (he doesn't have a throat, right? Let's just say that he made a sort of throat-clearing sound) and resumed. _"WELL, IT'S TIME TO WELCOME THE THIRD CHALLENGER: THE EX ANCIENT MINISTER, 100% CIRCUITS, CHIPS AND METAL, PROVIDED WITH LASER-SHOOTING SIGHT AND PROPELLER. ACCLAIM THE SMASHER… ROBOTIC OPERATING BUDDY, OR SIMPLY R.O.B.."_

Various metallic parts appeared on the stage and then joined together to compound the robot. He then spun his head and arms in opposite directions, before turning and focusing his camera-like eyes to his opponents.

"Bzzz! I will defeat you!"

"_AND FINALLY THE FOURTH CHALLENGER: STRAIGHT FROM ANGEL LAND, THE CAPTAIN OF THE ARMY OF THE GODDESS PALUTENA, THE KID ICARUS, DEMON SLAYER AND DEFENDER OF JUSTICE. GREET THE GREAT… PIT!"_

A sort of divine light appeared from on high, before vanishing and revealing Pit in all his angelic glory. He then divided his bow in two halves, spun the blades on both hands and then crossed them.

"The fight is on!"

"_WELL, SMASHERS… PREPARE TO DISCOVER IN WHICH STAGE YOU ARE GOING TO FIGHT. COMPUTER, YOUR TURN!"_

The Recreaters around the arena flashed a couple of times and then released a powerful white light that covered completely the stage, preventing the audience and the fighters to see. After a while, a fanfare started to play, giving a hint about the chosen stage.

***AUDIENCE***

Juliet's eyes widened and she snapped the fingers of her right hand. "I recognize this sound! This is from the stage…"

The light started to grow dim little by little and some high buildings could be foreseen from it. They were mostly colored purple, blue and pink, and a very high skyscraper could be seen in the background, so high that it pierced through the clouds.

"…New Pork City!"

"You guessed right! New Pork City!" replied Fox, nodding to the teen.

"It resembles a lot a city of my world. Even the name and the statue are similar!"

"Really?"

"Yup! It resembles New York City!"

"New York? If I recall right Little Mac said something about a city of New York of his world. He's from the… Bronx, if I remember right."

"Mh… yeah, I think it was the Bronx…"

Juliet was trying to hear what Crazy Hand was saying about the stage, but was hindered by some shouts coming from the upper audience. She looked up and saw Ness, Lucas and Jeff glaring at the arena.

"Umpf! Among all the stages present in this tournament why the computer had to choose… THAT STAGE?" yelled Ness, frowning and stretching his arms out toward the stadium.

"Well, Ness, it was only a case! You don't have to be so mad!" replied Red, trying to calm his friend.

"I know… but why did they have to accept this stage in the first place? Why not accept something like… Tazmily Village, for example?"

Lucas looked at him for a moment, before sighing and looking at the stage, his mind filling with memories and remembrances.

"Maybe… because it's not competitively viable?"

"You wouldn't say that if the chosen stage was Saffron City! After all it has been taken over by that team, before you defeated all its members. Err, what was its name…?"

"Team Rocket?"

"Yes, that team!"

Red shrugged. "Well… I don't really know what I would think. I had to confront Team Rocket and free the city, that's true, but I also obtained my Marsh Badge from Sabrina. So it was more a mixed bag."

"Mh… I see…"

Juliet was listening attentively to the conversation of the two boys, but after a while decided to redirect her attention to the stadium. She didn't want to miss a single moment of the battle.

***STADIUM***

The Smashers were looking around them, while elaborating strategies to fight in that big stage and trying to detect their opponents.

"_NEW PORK CITY, SURVIVAL BATTLE, NO ITEMS! SMASHERS, GET READY FOR THE FIGHT!"_

The fighters nodded and went in their defensive stances.

"_3… 2… 1… GO!"_

Snake went on the offensive with a barrage of Hand Grenades, trying to keep his opponents to a safety distance. The others saw the bombs falling and ran away in order to dodge the explosions. Pit then retaliated by shooting a series of Palutena's Arrows, which managed to hit the spy. Snake grunted and put his arms in front of him to protect himself against the fast hits.

Pit was continuing his attack, when he heard someone shouting from behind him. "Aether!"

The angel rapidly split his bow in two halves and turned to the noise…

CLANG!

The sword and the two blades connected with each other, blocking their respective attacks. "Not bad, Feather-kid!" "Same for you, Black Bandanna!"

Ike smirked and pushed the angel forward, before slashing him a couple of times. Pit counter-attacked with an Angel Ring, before a Remote Missile exploded between the two warriors.

BOOM!

"Never ignore an opponent during a fight!" said Snake, after seeing the two warriors catching fire for a brief moment. He then spun around after hearing some sort of noises and barely dodged a laser, fired by R.O.B.. "Bzzz, well said Master Snake! Never ignore an opponent during a fight!"

The spy said nothing and grabbed a Hand Grenade. "Pff, centuries must pass before a robot manages to beat me!

He then pulled out the pin and threw the bomb at the mechanical being.

Punch, kick, slash. Punch, kick, slash. Ike was on top of the situation thanks to his hard-hitting attacks, while Pit tried several times to block his moves, to no avail. He had to think fast to a way to free himself from the swordsman's attacks if he wanted to win the fight. But how could he do that?

CHING! ROAR!

The sky suddenly darkened and Ike stopped his attacks and turned to see who or what had emitted that roar. His and Pit's eyes widened when they saw who had arrived: a large pink creature with a huge toothy mouth, purple little wings, a devil tail and a button and a chick on his head. The creature roared again and dashed toward the two Smashers.

"Ultimate Chimera! Run for your life!" shouted Pit, before running away. Ike had some troubles staying ahead the big monster, but at the last second managed to jump on the oscillating platform, just missing the Chimera's bite.

***AUDIENCE***

"Holy cheese! The Ultimate Chimera! Wow, is even scarier for real!" said Juliet, her eyes and mouth wide open.

"Yeah, he can be scary. But if you're fast enough you can escape from that monster quite easily" replied Fox, looking at the monster who was on the edge of the platform, unsure if jump to the other platforms or not.

"Ah! Well, that's not a problem for me! Compared to me, that monster is as slow as a snail!" responded Sonic, putting his arms behind his head.

"Don't tell me…" replied Juliet, smirking at the blue Smasher.

***STADIUM***

R.O.B. and Snake were punching each other, weakening their respective opponent little by little. Snake then side-stepped and planted a C4 on the robot's head, before taking some distance. The robot tried to remove the bomb, but his arms didn't allow much movement and the bomb exploded, sending the mechanical being flying. He then collided with Pit, who was gliding thanks to the Wings of Icarus, and both the Smashers fell on the platform with the breakable floor, slightly confused.

THUD!

In the meantime, the Ultimate Chimera had vanished in a puff of smoke and Ike saw Pit and R.O.B. lying on the floor. He turned to see the last Smasher and saw a Remote Missile approaching him. He destroyed the projectile with a rapid blow of his sword and then charged Snake with his Ragnell ablaze. Snake dodged the slash, but then the blue haired man plunged his sword in front of him, generating a pillar of flames that scorched the spy and drained a good amount of his energy.

Pit recovered from his confusion and proceeded in attacking his metallic opponent with his blades. The Minister reacted with an Arm Rotor and a fully charged Robo Beam. Pit blocked the laser with his Mirror Shield and, before his foe had a chance to charge him with another rotating attack, he jumped on a floating limousine. He then started firing several Light Arrows toward the robot, increasing the accumulated damage of the mechanical being.

The two mercenaries engaged in a close combat, throwing powerful punches and kicks to their respective opponent. "That's all what you got, Snake? You disappoint me!" said Ike, distancing himself from the other man in order to catch his breath back.

"Not quite…" replied the spy, looking intently at the other fighter. "I got to admit it… you're strong…" said the man, clenching his fists. "…but that doesn't mean that I'll let you win!" concluded Snake, before restarting his attack.

Pit assaulted R.O.B. with a fast aerial attack, moving his blades in an 'X'-like fashion and then spinning them in front of him. The robot reacted with a slight laser pulse, interrupting the angel's attacks, before retracting his arms and extending them quickly, sending the other Smasher flying and making him land on a little platform. The light on the robot's head turned on and the being started charging a Super Robo Beam, when…

CHIN!

The sky darkened again and the robot knew well what was going on. He rotated his head and his camera-like eyes focused on the intruder. His light flashed a couple of times and the mechanical being panicked. "WARNING! WARNING! Detected Ultimate Chimera! Avoid contact! Avoid con…"

Before R.O.B. had a chance to activate his propeller the monster had already opened its huge jaws and closed them around the Smasher's chest, making a loud crunching noise and sending the fighter flying. Pit dodged the airborne Smasher with a fast jump and a flutter of wings and saw the Ex Minister collide with the barrier.

"BZZZ!"

And R.O.B. vanished in a flash.

"_R.O.B.'S OUT!"_

***AUDIENCE***

"Uuuh… crunched to death! What a terrible way to lose a fight!" said Juliet, crossing her arms and staring at the pink creature with wide eyes.

"Yeah, that was kinda unfortunate! If it wasn't for that monster maybe the loser would have been Pit. He was grounded, after all!" responded Fox, narrowing his eyes and looking at Snake and Ike, which were still scuffling on some floating platforms.

"Maybe…" replied the teen, nodding. "But can you tell me one thing? Why did you put the Ultimate Chimera as a hazard? Isn't it a bit too strong?"

"Well, we found that monster in the bathrooms of the Empire Porky Building and since it was too dangerous for the people living near the area Master Hand had decided to take it here at the Mansion, so he can control it better. And besides, Smashers and all the other fighters must be ready to face any kind of danger or trouble at any moment."

"Mh, right…" said the girl, glancing nervously at Fox after his sentence. She knew perfectly what kind of perils all or almost all the people of the tournament had confronted in the past and admitted in shame that she wouldn't have any chance against the same enemies.

_Well, they're not called Smashers for nothing… but I wonder if they can teach a few tricks. It would really be cool, if they can…_

"So now there are only three Smashers. Who is going to win?" asked the teen, turning her attention to the stadium.

"No idea! During a Brawl anything can happen! Let's see how this battle will develop!" responded Fox, putting a hand on his muzzle.

***STADIUM***

"Poor R.O.B.! I hope he is alright…" said Pit, looking at the point of the barrier where the robot had vanished. He then turned to the Ultimate Chimera, who was snarling and biting the air, trying to reach the angel. After a while, the monster vanished again and the winged warrior took this chance to go against the others.

"Aether!" The blue mercenary threw his sword on the air, hitting Snake on the face and sending him flying, then spun a few times in the air and ended his move with a rapid vertical slash, hurling the spy to the ground. Snake felt a bit dizzy after losing rapidly loads of energy during the attack and struggled a little to stand up again. He knew that another attack like that could knock him out easily.

Ike started charging energy for his finishing move, his sword Ragnell enveloped in bright flames and held up high. Snake put his fists in front of him, readying himself for the hit, when he saw Pit charging a Light Arrow. The spy immediately threw himself to the ground and Ike looked at him with a puzzled expression. The blue haired man then felt something piercing through the barrier on his shoulder and staggered a bit after the hit. Snake rapidly stood and threw a powerful vertical Smash kick, sending the other mercenary flying against the stage's barrier.

"Argh!"

And Ike disappeared.

"_IKE'S OUT!"_

Snake cracked his knuckles and stared at his last opponent, sending a cold glare at the angel. But Pit was unfazed and after a while smiled at him.

"May the best man win, Snake!" said the angel, holding his blades in front of him. Snake half-smiled and nodded. They then charged at each other.

***AUDIENCE***

_Wow, last man standing challenge… I wonder who is going to win: an angel with light fast hitting moves or a spy with powerful attacks and good KO resistance? It's quite hard to guess…_

"It seems that the Brawl is almost over…" said Juliet.

"Yeah! Now it's only a matter of good prediction, patience and a bit of luck. They both have a chance to win, since they're both battered by the fight." replied Fox, smiling and looking attentively the match.

"You're right. Anyone can win this fight. But the question is: who will win?"

"Well, let's find out! We only have to watch!" responded Sonic, putting his arms behind the chair back.

***STADIUM***

Snake dodged all the slashes launched by the angel and countered with a powerful punch followed by a kick, making the other Smasher fall on the floor. He attempted to hit his opponent again, but Pit retaliated with a Light Arrow shot on the face of the spy and, with a fast sweep of his legs, made the spy trip over. Before the mercenary could touch the floor the angel rapidly kneeled down and swiped both his blades toward the man, sending him flying and making him collide with the oscillating platform. The spy grunted and balanced himself on the pendulum, before firing a Remote Missile and aiming it at the angel. Pit rotated his blades in an Angel Ring, deflecting the projectile and directing it toward the mercenary. Snake dodged swiftly the projectile with a jump, but before he could attack again Pit charged him with a fast and powerful glide attack, slashing his blades in an arc from bottom to forward. The impact was so violent that Snake clashed against the upper barrier of the stadium.

"Umpf!"

And the Smasher vanished in a bright light.

"_GAME! AND THE WINNER IS… PIT!"_

"Oh, yeah! I won!" shouted Pit happily, punching the air with his fist and smiling at the crowd.

"_CONGRATULATIONS, PIT!"_

Cheers, squeals and applauses echoed in the stage, the audience greatly pleased by the performance of the Smashers.

"Bravooo! You did great, Pit!" shouted Juliet, springing up and clapping her hands with energy.

"Yeah! Good battle, pal!" exclaimed Sonic, following Juliet's example.

"Hey, I don't think he can hear you with all these noises. Pay your compliments when you'll meet him in the Training Room. Don't waste your voice." replied Fox, looking at the two youngsters, which immediately shut up.

"… _AND THAT'S ALL FOR THE INAUGURATION OF THE SUPER SMASH BROS BRAWL TOURNAMENT. WE'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW FOR MORE FIGHTS, MORE CHALLENGES, MORE TRIALS, MORE BRAWLS. SAME HOUR, HERE AT THE STADIUM OR ON CHANNEL 254. THIS IS… SUPER… SMASH BROS… BRAWWWWL!"_

A last wave of cheers and shouts roared in the stadium, before the crowd began to disperse and return to their respective homes and worlds and the Smashers and Juliet to return in the Waiting Room. It was time to greet the winner.

* * *

><p>Pit teleported in the Waiting Room and looked at the others. Ike and R.O.B. approached him.<p>

"Hey, Pit! Congratulations for your victory! You were great!"

"I agree with Master Ike. The performance of Master Pit was beyond this unit's expectation. Congratulations!"

"Oh, thanks guys! But you gave me a rough ride! You were great too!"

"Yeah, right… but next time I'll beat you!"

"Ah, in your dreams!"

The trio then exchanged handshakes and looked at each other in respect.

Snake said nothing. He glanced for a second at the group before looking away. He still couldn't believe that he has lost to a… weird mutant kid.

"…_ON CHANNEL 254. THIS IS… SUPER… SMASH BROS… BRAWWWWL!"_

The Smashers in the Training Room turned to the voice and prepared themselves to receive the praises and critiques from the others. Surely they had many, if not lots.

After a while the door opened and the members of the Smash company entered in the room, and rapidly crowded around the fighters.

"Congratulations for your victory, Pit! You were fantastic!" said Link with a smile.

"Yeah! _Ottimo lavoro_, my friend! (Good job, my friend!)" added Mario, nodding at the angel.

"Yay! You were… ah! And then… urgh! And then… swoosh! And then… clang!" exclaimed Kirby rapidly, waving his arms furiously.

"Wooyahoo! Awesome, Pit! You kept all of us in suspense!" said Yoshi, waving his tail happily.

"Thanks a lot! I appreciate what you have told me. It means a lot for me… especially from you, who are Veteran Smashers!"

"Right, but don't let it go to your head! Only because you won once it doesn't mean that you are unstoppable!"

"I won't, Mario! Don't worry!"

The little group kept talking, while Marth and Roy neared Ike.

"Your Majesties…" said Ike, bowing at the two nobles.

"There is no need for such formalities, you know!" replied Roy.

"I know… but it's stronger than me. I can't help but show all my respect in front of royalty. It's my nature."

"That's alright, Ike. So… how are you feeling after your first official Brawl?" asked Marth, looking intently at the other swordsman.

"Well… it didn't go exactly how I had expected! I think I could have done better than that!" responded the mercenary, looking visibly disappointed.

"Eh, don't worry! This was only a fight! There will be more Brawls and you'll face more challengers during this tournament. And you have the chance to train your skills and to study your opponents. Next time you'll do better!" said Roy, trying to cheer up the older boy.

"Roy is right! _Ue ni kite! _(Come on!)" replied Marth, nodding and smiling at his Fire Emblem's fellow.

**[A/N: I have no idea if "Ue ni kite!" really means "Come on!". I simply used a translator. If the sentence is wrong, let me know and this same sentence will self-destruct. Thanks for your comprehension!**

**Sentence: Don't let her know… don't let her know…]**

Ike smiled back at the duo and nodded. "Thank you so much! I'm feeling much better!"

"Glad to know. What about some spicy steaks as a consolation prize?"

Ike's eyes immediately lit up. "Oh, sure! After all this fighting I need some proteins! Let's go!"

And the mercenary headed for the Smash Bar, closely followed by the two royals.

"Amazing, Marth! You really lifted his mood in a second!" whispered Roy, smirking at the other Smasher.

"Well, as you know a prince must be ready to lift the spirit of his people, especially in dire situations. I heard that Ike is known for his love of food, mainly meat dishes like ribs and steaks, so I used this information to my benefit."

"Really? If that's so, we have found the perfect rival for Ness!"

"Mh, you're right! I never thought about that!" replied the blue haired noble, chuckling at the other's sentence.

The Fire Emblem group left the room, while Lucario and Meta Knight stood besides Snake. They didn't talk much, but the looks they were giving to each other were enough to know what the others were thinking. It was almost like a telepathic conversation, only with the language of eyes.

Mr. Game&Watch, Diddy Kong and Donkey Kong were conversing with R.O.B. about his match, and surprisingly the latter wasn't mad or sad or depressed. He simply accepted his defeat without taking it too personally.

"Beep, too bad that you have lost, Minister. I was rooting for you!" said the two-dimensional man.

"Yeah, too bad pal!" added Diddy.

"Bzzz, that's ok! This unit has done anything it could during the fight. It has not calculated the eventuality of an Ultimate Chimera's appearance and so it has lost. These things happen!"

"Ukki, it's incredible how you are so relaxed even after your loss! I think I would have thrown a tantrum if I had lost! How can you do that?" replied Donkey Kong, looking attentively at the robot.

"Simple cold-bloodedness, my primate friend. It's quite easy to be unfazed if you have metal and mechanic processes instead of organic cells and instincts. That's one of the good sides of being a robot."

"If you say so… but what are your impressions about the fight?"

"It went rather well, Diddy. Not exactly like calculated, but still quite well. Next time, I'll do better computations and I'll increase my chances of success."

"Good luck with that. If we're going to face you we won't have any mercy, beep!" said Mr. Game&Watch, before ringing his bell.

"I agree. We won't let you win so easily, even if you are a friend! Beware, R.O.B.!" said Diddy, clapping his hands above his head.

"Uk, uk! I agree too! Snake's punches will be caresses compared to mine. You'd better train hard, if you want to have some chances against me!" exclaimed Donkey, tapping his chest with his fist and then pointing his hand to the mechanical being.

"Bzzz, it's you that have to be careful, my friends! I will not lose again!" replied R.O.B., flashing his light a couple of time and rotating his arms.

The foursome nodded to each other and then gathered around the group of other Smashers. They saw various people still acclaiming Pit and asking for a challenge against him. Among the people they saw Juliet together with Sonic and Fox, conversing with the winner of the Newcomer's Brawl.

"Gosh, Pit! I knew that you were good, but I didn't know that you were that… good!" exclaimed Juliet, flailing his arms about.

"Thanks, Juliet! But I did nothing special, really!"

"Don't be so modest! You were fantastic! The title of captain is well-earned!"

"Don't you think that maybe you're praising him too much?" asked Fox, glancing at the young human.

"No! I'm simply stating the truth! I think that everyone (excluding me) has the same possibilities of winning in this tournament. Everyone has his own abilities and powers and only the way in which someone responds to a situation influences the result of the match."

"Yeah, maybe you're right…"

"Well, Pit… now you had your opportunity to have some warm-up exercises. When are you going to have a real match against me?"

"Whenever you want! Just ask me and I'll be glad to fight you. But beware, Sonic… I won't be a pushover!"

"I'm not asking for anything better! I love challenges!"

Both the teen Smashers grinned and bumped their fists together, in a sign of genuine competitiveness. Fox smiled at the duo and Juliet looked curiously at the fighters. She was fascinated by the ways in which everybody was interacting with each other. She wanted to go and talk to everybody, but she was rather tense by the number of people in the same room. The teen tried to shake off her nervousness, but it kept creeping up. So she decided to stay quiet and listen to the conversations, trying to gather all the information she could about the tournament. But suddenly…

BWEEP! BWEEP! BWEEP! BWEEP!

Everyone stopped talking and looked up, a bit disoriented and confused. Juliet was surprised and wondered what was going on. A strange yellow light started flashing various times and the Smashers gasped.

"Uh, oh!" "Yellow warning! Yellow warning!" "Do exactly like we have practiced!" "Quick, quick! We have to move!" "Scatter! Fast!"

The Smashers started running outside the room and Juliet looked at the crowd exiting the place, bewildered.

"W-what… what's going on? What I am supposed to do? Can anyone answer me?"

It seemed like nobody was paying attention to the young human, but Red approached her.

"Oh, Juliet! Why are you not… oh, right! You don't know the procedure! It's better that you return in your room and stay there until further advice!"

"Uh? But why?"

"We'll… explain to you later. There is no time for answers. Now we'd better go!"

"Ok… I you say so…"

And both the humans exited from the Waiting Room and headed toward their respective dorms.

* * *

><p>"Gosh! Where was the bedroom again? Dang, I can't remember!"<p>

The girl was looking around her, scratching her head and frowning. "I knew that I had to bring a map and a compass with me! I knew that! This place is so huge!"

She then saw a Yellow Alloy approaching her and dashed toward it. "Uh, excuse me… do you know where room 33 is, please?"

The robot looked at her and responded with its metallic voice. "Room 33? Go straight, turn at the second right and then turn at the third left. You'll find your room at your right."

"Oh. Thank you!"

"You're welcome, miss Juliet!" and the robot resumed its walking. The girl giggled a little and followed the robot's instructions.

_Miss Juliet! I'm feeling almost like a superstar! Super!_

After a while, she found her room. "Ah, finally!"

She opened the door and closed it with her fingertips. She then sighed and looked around. "Well, it seems that I am stuck here until the Smashers' announcement. But seriously… what's going on?"

She crossed her arms and thought hard to a possible answer, but nothing came to her mind. "Whatever, as long as it has nothing to do with invasions or similar it's fine with me. In the meanwhile what can I do?"

Her eyes glanced for a split second at the computer and she immediately grinned. "Of course, Internet! Let's surf the Web in the meantime!"

She neared the machine and booted it up. On the screen a Smash Ball appeared and a light pulse kept running around it.

_What's that? The Smash's equivalent of Microsoft? …it's kinda cool!_

The Smash Ball exploded in little bits and the desktop appeared on the screen. The cursor was the classic arrow of a normal computer, but kept changing color… exactly like a Smash Ball.

_Ok… I know that this is the Super Smash Bros Tournament and all, but putting something related to the championship in every single thing… isn't that a bit excessive?_

She stared at every single icon and window on the desktop, but she had no idea of what thing did what.

"Mhhh, ok… now, how does this PC work?"

"_Have some trouble? I can help you, if you want."_

"Waagh! What…" said Juliet in surprise, looking attentively at the computer. "Who… are you?"

"_My name is TEC-XX, but you can call me TEC. At your service."_

"TEC? But… weren't you the main computer of the X-Nauts?"

_Fantastic… first I talked to animals and now I'm talking to a computer! This place won't stop surprising me!_

"_Exactly. I worked for them for almost all my cybernetic life, but then… I learned the meaning of love, thanks to Princess Peach, and I turned against my creator. He was… mean, and tried to turn me off forever. Master Hand gave me a new sense for my life and now I'm the main computer of the Smash Mansion."_

"A-ah, very interesting!"

"_If you need something, just ask. I'll be glad to help you, Juliet."_

"How do you know my name?"

"_I'm the main computer. I know everything that happens in this mansion."_

"I see… well TEC, can you tell me how I can connect to the Internet?"

"_That's easy. You have just to double-click here…"_

An icon with a big W in front of a little planet highlighted and Juliet directed her attention to it. _"… and you'll be immediately surfing the Web."_

"Oh. Thanks a lot, TEC!"

"_You're welcome. Is there anything else?"_

"Uh, yeah… do you know any good search site? I don't think you know Google…"

"_No. That name is foreign to me. I'd suggest you Mousearch, above the address bar. It's a very good search motor, fast and efficient."_

"Thanks! And… can you tell me what the 'yellow warning' is? Why everybody panicked?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Ehm… TEC?"

"_This information is classified."_

"Wait, what? Why?"

"_Only the fighters and the members of the staff are allowed to know this information."_

"And… can't I be considered a member of the staff?"

"_No. You're currently registered as a guest."_

"Umpf, that's unfair! Can you at least tell me if it's something dangerous?"

"_No."_

"No what? No that it is dangerous or no that you can tell me?"

"_No that I can tell you. All information is classified."_

"…this sucks."

"_My apologies. The orders come from above. I can't do anything against them."_

"Naah, don't worry. That's fine… I think."

"_Apart that information, do you want to ask me something?"_

"No, I have nothing to ask. Thanks for your help!"

"_You're welcome. If you need some help simply call me and I'll contact you as soon as possible. Now I need to go. Goodbye, Juliet!"_

"Bye, TEC! Thanks again!"

The teen reached for the mouse and directed the cursor on the browser icon, before double-clicking it. A big window showed up and a little tune started playing. "What the…"

She looked at the address on the browser and read SSB. "No way… this is the official site of Super Smash Bros? That's so COOL!"

She smirked and darted her eyes all over the page, while singing softly the Super Smash Bros Brawl opening song. "Well, well, well… where do I start?"

She moved slowly the cursor across her options. "Let's see… 'What is SSB?'… I already know that. Mh… 'Fighters Biographies'… interesting, maybe I'll find some things that I don't know about the Smashers. And… 'Brawl Reruns'… well, if I miss one fight I can watch it here. Perfect!"

The girl distanced herself from the monitor and put a hand on her mouth. "Wow, this is very interesting… hey, what I am seeing? There is also a chat box? And a Q&A? And a forum? And a gallery? And a strange little section called 'Random stuff'? Whoa, amazing!"

The teen's grin widened and rapidly clicked on the chat box. A registration page appeared and the girl started thinking about a good nickname.

"Ok, let's see… uhm… how can I name myself? Mh… maybe…"

She typed something on the keyboard. "The_Blitz_Girl!" shouted Juliet, raising a fist on the air, but soon after frowned and lowered her arm. "Naah, too long! What about… 'Simple_human'?"

She stared at the name for a while and shook her head. "Nope, that's pathetic! Uhm… what about… err… 'Shinywolf'?"

She thought for a moment and after a while laughed. "Ah ha ha, this name is so silly! Who would name himself or herself 'Shinywolf'? It's ridiculous!"

She started deleting the name, when…

CRASH!

"Whoa, what the…"

Juliet looked around her wildly, and soon after a voice came from outside the window.

"CRAZY! THAT'S THE FOURTH WALL THAT YOU BREAK TODAY! CAN YOU BE MORE CAREFUL?"

"_SORRY… BUT I LOOOOVE SO MUCH BREAKING WALLS! IT'S SO FUN! AND NOW LET'S GO FOR THE FIFTH WALL!"_

Some yells of annoyance and frustration could be heard from outside and Juliet sweatdropped. "Oook… that was just random!"

She returned her attention to the screen and started thinking again to some names. "Uhm… I have no idea! What…"

Suddenly a metaphorical bell rang inside her head and began typing again. "… about… 'Star_Teen'? Maybe it's not perfect, but I'll think to a better one later!"

She completed the registration and looked for some room where she could chat. But they were all empty. "Aww… too bad! There is no one here! Where is everybody?"

The girl huffed and closed the chat box. "I'll check the chat box later. Now, what I'm going to do?"

She restarted moving her cursor and her gaze was caught by the section 'Random stuff'. She clicked on it and looked at the last entry. It was labeled "Peach's Castle".

"Uh? What's that?"

She clicked on the title and a window popped out. She then started reading.

"Everybody knows Princess Peach. She's the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and she is known for her kindness and for her knack of being constantly kidnapped by Bowser and rescued by Mario (Bros). Same old story and everybody is fed up of it. But have you ever wondered about her castle? It has been destroyed, transported in the sky, possessed and even transformed in a self-propelled fortress by Fawful! And every time the Koopa King invades the Mushroom Kingdom the castle has ALWAYS to be rebuilt and the Toads and all people living peacefully in the reign contribute in its rebuilding. But there is something else about that. The castle is always rebuilt in a different pattern, and is always so different that even the Toads living at the mansion and the Mario Bros get lost easily in it. Why the castle keeps changing? That's a mystery! Maybe they always lose the maps? Maybe Bowser's minions steal the maps? Maybe they do that as a way to confound the enemies? Maybe Princess Peach has the fad of design? Nobody knows, but we'll keep investigating. Sam O' News, out!"

The girl kept staring at the screen, letting the info sink in.

"Oooh… that would explain why in every single Mario game Peach's Castle is always different! Who would think about that?"

She shook her head and closed the window. "Ahhh, I must say that to all my friends when I return home. But… will they believe me?"

Juliet was lost in her train of thoughts, when…

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK…

"Mh? Oh, coming!" said the girl, standing up and going toward the door.

KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK...

"Coming, coming! Sheesh, what impatience!"

The teen opened the door and looked around, but she saw nobody. "Hey, but…"

"I'm down here…"

"Uh?"

She looked down and gasped at the sight. "Pit? What the heck happened to you?" asked the girl, looking intently at the angel: he had torn clothes, slightly deplumed wings and strange red mouth-shaped marks all over his body. Was it… lipstick?

"Oh, Juliet! You have to help me! They're pursuing me!"

"Pursuing you? Who?"

"There is no time for explanations! Can I hide in your bathroom?"

"Uh…"

"Thank you so much!" responded him, before dashing toward the bath and slamming the door hard.

Juliet stared at the bathroom's door for a while, before sweatdropping and saying "…I didn't say yes…"

She exited cautiously from her room and looked around the corridor, trying to see who or what was pursuing the angel. Who was chasing him? Demons? Monsters? Aliens? Creditors? She then heard some squeals and cries coming from her right and turned to the noise. She saw some rising dust approaching her and her eyes widened.

"What the…"

THUMP!

She was pushed aside abruptly by a herd of some unidentified creatures and fell on the floor with a thud.

"Owch!"

The girl massaged her back and looked up. She saw some girls of various species, like humans, Toads, anthropomorphic animals and various others creatures. All of them were wearing some fake halos and angel costumes, holding some signs with written something like 'I love you, my guardian angel!' or 'Marry me, my Kid Icarus!'. One of them looked at her apologetically.

"Ops, sorry gal! Did we hurt you?"

"Nooo, what make you think that?" replied the teenager, rolling her eyes. She then stood up, dusting herself, and glared at the group. "Why were you running so uncontrollably? You can't run in that way in the corridors, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah, we know! But we were running after Pit, before he disappeared mysteriously."

"But… who are you? And why are you looking for him?"

The leader grinned and said "What, don't you know? We're the members of the Pit's Fan Club! Pit rules!"

"PIT! EEEEH!" squealed the others behind the leader, flailing their arms and signs wildly.

Juliet sweatdropped and backed off a little, suddenly understanding why Pit was in that condition.

"And you? Who are you? You're not a Smasher, nor an Assist or a Field Character! Who are you?"

"That's… none of your business." responded nervously the teen, crossing her arms and looking away.

"Well, at least can you tell us where that handsome angel has gone? Since he ran across this corridor maybe you heard him or saw him."

"Uh… mh… yes, I heard him. He said… something like… hide in the Serenity Garden or something like that…"

"Serenity Garden! EEEEH! Let's go, girls! Get him!"

They all started running again… and pushed aside Juliet again… and said sorry… again!

"Ouf, what the heck?"

She looked at the leaving dust and shook her head in annoyance. "Holy cheese! Everybody is crazy around here! I can't even have some peace, gosh!"

She stood up and dusted herself, before entering in the room and closing the door. She sighed in relief and knocked at the door of the bathroom. "They're gone, Pit! You can come out!"

She heard some clicking sound and backed off, to let the angel open the door and look outside.

"Really? Are you really sure that they're gone?"

"Yeah, don't worry pal!"

"Oh, thank you so much, Juliet! I owe you one!"

"Naah, you let me stay on your lap before! Let's call it quits!" replied the girl, smiling at him.

The angel exhaled in content and seated down on the teen's bed, wiping his face from the sweat and the lipstick and breathing deeply. He then spoke "Gosh, those fangirls are as sticky as superglue! They kept running after me for at least an hour! Some of them were even wearing jet shoes! Huff… huff…"

Juliet stared at the angel in disbelief and mild amusement. "But Pit, you fought all kinds of monsters and enemies in your immortal life, even the Primids during the Subspace Emissary Events! How can you run away from a group of defenseless fans?"

The Smasher laughed nervously, before answering. "I prefer a hundred times to fight a whole shoal of ravenous sharks or a flock of bloodthirsty flying demons instead of confronting a mob of…ungh, rabid fangirls!"

Juliet giggled. "Yeah, they can surely be the worst nightmare for a popular star like you!"

"You can't even imagine how much! Paparazzi and crazy fans that try to discover every single secret and every single habit of us fighters… especially the Smashers! They tend to ignore the Assists, the Field Characters and the non-legendary Pokemon, except maybe people like Shadow, Lyn or Isaac."

"Ok… I'm so glad to not be famous, if that means that nobody will pursue me! But doesn't the mansion have some kind of security system to prevent the curious from entering inside?"

"Of course it has one, but somehow the fanatics always manage to crack the system and to enter inside. Jeff and R.O.B. are working in restoring it, but it will take a long time. Meanwhile, we have to avoid the fans since we can't hurt them."

"Uncomfortable rule, isn't it?"

"You have no idea! But I think that is right that way. Power and magic must be used to help and protect people, not to harm them for trivial reasons!"

"I fully agree with you!" replied Juliet, nodding. The girl then tapped her mouth a couple of times with her fingers, before saying "Tell me, Pit. What is the function of the 'yellow warning'? I have half an idea, but I want to be sure."

"Yellow warning… it stands for 'fans alert'. The Smashers must be ready to avoid and dodge all the fans until the system is restored. But gosh, it's quite hard!"

"Consider that a good exercise for your speed and stamina, so when the time will come you'll be ready to run away from a pack of animals."

"Ah ha, maybe you're right. Fans help us keeping ourselves fit, after all."

Both the angel and human chuckled a little, before the winged hero turned to the PC. "Hey, what were you doing?"

"Uh?"

She followed his gaze and responded "Ah, nothing! I tried to find someone to talk with, but I found no one."

"Good luck with that! All Smashers are occupied hiding and running away from the fans!"

"I thought that… what a shame!" replied the girl, blowing on a lock of unruly hair and making it stand up for a while. "Well, I'd like to explore more the mansion and maybe grab something to eat. Will it be safe for me?"

"Well… I think so. You're an unknown person, after all. I think you will be confused for some other fanatic. You won't have any trouble."

"Are you sure about that? Red told me to wait further orders."

"I'm completely sure. You will be ok. And don't worry about me! When the dust will be settled I'll return to my room. I hope you don't mind if I stay here a bit longer."

"Not at all! Stay here as much as you want!"

"Thanks, Juliet!"

"You're welcome! Well… see you later, Pit! Bye!"

"Bye, Juliet!"

The girl opened the door and went outside. She was a bit hesitant to leave the angel alone, but after he gave her a reassuring smile, she nodded, closed the door and walked around the mansion. She heard some squeals and noises all over the place, but ignored them. She felt… strangely safe.

_Thank you, my unknowness! Ah ha ha, that name doesn't make any sense, but I like it._

After some walking she reached a door with engraved LIBRARY and, being the curious person she is, she entered inside. What she saw left her agape: she saw various stories of books and CDs, of all heights and widths, and there were some people reading quietly. She entered slowly and looked at all the titles. She recognized a few ones, like 'Frankenstein' or 'Alice in Wonderland' or 'Romeo and Juliet' or 'Macbeth' or 'Tarzan' or '1984' or… you got the idea.

_What? They even have books from my world! My dear cheese, they have EVERYTHING! Or almost…_

She was walking around without seeing ahead, when she bumped into someone.

THUMP!

"Ouf!"

The teen collided with a tall person, that released an "Uh?" in surprise, and she then fell on the ground. "Ops, sorry sir! I didn't see you! Sorry!" said the girl, looking at the man hiding behind an open book.

"That's ok, don't worry! I almost felt noth…" began the boy, before glancing for a moment at the fallen girl and gasping. "…wait! But you… you're Juliet, right?"

The person extended his hand to the teenager and helped her getting up.

"Yeeep! It's me… I'm sorry… I'm…"

She looked directly at the person and her eyes widened. In front of her stood a young man with blue messy hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a dark bandanna around his front, a blue shirt with some leathery parts, a long red cape and white gloves and pants. Around his waist there was a dark belt with hung a very long golden sword.

"Ike?"

"That's right, it's me. Are you ok?"

"Uh… yeah, I'm fine, no problem!" replied the girl, nodding fast. "Can you tell me what are you doing here? Research or hiding from the fans?"

"More the second one. I think nobody will suspect that I'm hiding here!"

"Eh he he, yeah! You don't seem exactly a bookworm! Or one who read at all!" said Juliet, smirking at the swordsman and putting her arms behind her back.

"Only because I never went to a real school it doesn't mean that I am an ignorant brute warrior!"

"I know that! But you got to admit that is quite… unusual, seeing someone like you hiding in a place like that. And from a group of innocent girls!"

"Innocent?" said Ike, almost yelling and looking at the teen with wide eyes. "You have no idea of what they are capable to do! They…"

He interrupted himself after reminding with who he was talking to. "…maybe… it's better that you don't know. It's too complicated to explain!"

"Eh, I understand. We girls can be quite… tricky and mysterious, sometimes! Eh he he!" replied the teenager, looking at the mercenary with a devilish gaze. Ike raised an eyebrow, a puzzled expression on his traits, but said nothing. After a little, both the humans heard some footsteps.

"Someone is approaching!" said Ike, before hiding again behind his book. "Please, Juliet, cover my back!"

"Got it!" responded Juliet, giving him a thumbs-up. She then slowly turned to the noise and saw some girls padding along with raised signs. She couldn't read what was written, but knew well what was going on.

"IKEEE! WE KNOW YOU'RE HIDING HERE! YOU CAN RUN, BUT YOU CAN'T HIIIIDE!"

Juliet cringed at the shout and approached the group, almost stomping.

"Hey, you!"

The girls turned to the young human. "Shhhh! You are in a library! You can't shout!" whispered to the group, loud enough that they could hear her.

"Ops! Sorry!" the shouter whispered back, before gesturing the others to follow her. "Ikeee! Ikeee! Where are youuu? Ikeee!" resumed the leader, whispering.

Juliet waited until the group disappeared from her sight, before returning besides Ike.

"Mission completed!"

"Thank you, Juliet! You saved me!"

"Naah, that was nothing!"

"How can I repay you?"

"Mh… do you know where I can find some dance CDs? I have no idea where to go!"

"Dance CDs… I think they are stored in Aisle 8, but I'm not completely sure about that. I'm not a music fanatic."

"Neither I am, but some music once in a while is good. Thanks for the info!"

"No, thanks to you!"

The teen nodded and turned to leave, but Ike grasped her arm, obtaining her attention. "Ah, and please… don't tell anyone that I'm here. Ok?"

"Sealed lips!" replied the girl, sliding her fingers over her mouth as if she was sealing a zip.

"Thank you!"

And then the Smasher left, leaving the girl by herself. She looked for Aisle 8 and found several CDs that caught her attention. After a while she picked up three CDs: one with several dance remixes, one with rock and pop music, and a CD called "The best of Mozart".

_Perfect! Dance music, rock, pop and a bit of classical. The perfect combo!_

_**A choice can affect the future. Remember…**_

"Eeek!" yelped the girl, looking around frantically.

_Again that voice… but who…_

"Hey, where are you? Show yourself, you scary voice!"

"Shhh! Silence!"

The girl rapidly clamped her mouth with the hands and looked apologetically at the people, which were looking at her slightly annoyed.

"Sorry!" said the teen with whisper. Everybody nodded and returned to their readings.

_That's great! Now I'm hearing voices! The Smash atmosphere is already affecting my mind! Yay!_

She looked intently at her CDs, but saw nothing wrong with them.

_Bah, forget the voice! It was only an illusion… I hope._

She returned to the entrance, registered the CDs' renting and resumed her walking around the mansion. After approximately ten minutes she reached the Smash Bar… or at least what was left of it. It was a complete mess, with food and items scattered everywhere, and various Metal Alloys were cleaning the jumble.

_What the heck happened here? It seems like a kind of atmospheric phenomenon, like a tornado or similar, has passed this way! That's not a bar, that's a battlefield! What the heck!_

The teen neared the counter, where Brewster was rearranging some tools.

"Hey, hello Brewster!"

"Mh? Oh, hi Juliet! Sorry for the terrible condition in which my bar is."

"Naah, I don't mind it too much! But can you tell me what happened here?"

The barman frowned and crossed his wings. "Gulpin, Snorlax and some other buddies! They have been scared by all the fans and came here and made an almost clean sweep of the lunch I was preparing. Now I have to clean this mess before the arrival of the fighters."

"I see… uh, I came here to take something to eat, but if you are occupied then…"

"No, don't worry! I can prepare something, if you want. But nothing sophisticated, please, only fast foods."

"Mh… well… can you make me a simple toast with ham and cheese? And to drink just water."

"Ok, toast is coming! Give me only a couple of minutes…"

"Ok, I'll wait!"

The girl took a look at the bar, seeing the robots working hard to remove all the garbage from the place. She asked the robots if they needed some help, but they politely refused. The teen shrugged and returned near the counter.

"Here you are, Juliet. Toast and water for you."

"Mh? Oh! Thanks, Brewster!" said Juliet, taking the meal from the mustached bird.

"You're welcome. Now I'd better return doing the housework. Enjoy your lunch!"

"Thanks again! Goodbye, Brewster!"

"Goodbye, Juliet!"

The teen exited from the room and started eating her sandwich, while being careful to not leave crumbs around.

"Mmmm… delicious! Brewster is an excellent cook! Wow!" exclaimed the girl, happily. "I wonder what else this place is hiding me… let's check!"

And the teen quickened her pace, ignoring all the squeals that were echoing all around the mansion.

* * *

><p>"… I'm lost again… I can't believe it!" cried the girl in despair. "Gaaah, it's so confusing! I can't understand where the heck I'm going or where I went! Umpf!"<p>

She lowered her gaze and shook her head, trying to remember the plan of the huge place. She saw various Teleporting Machines during her wander, but they were still out of order. "I'd better find somebody and ask for directions."

She then found a half-open door and ran toward it, hoping to find someone that could help her. She poked her head inside and moved her gaze all around the room. In the chamber there were R.O.B., Jeff and Mewtwo, who had their looks directed to a big screen and were analyzing a series of numbers and colors that were appearing and beeping on the monitor. She moved forward, trying to not distract the people in the room and trying to understand what they were doing, while staying at a safe distance.

"_Come closer. You don't have to be so shy."_

"Eeep!" yelled the girl, hearing a strange voice in her mind, and obtaining the attention of the fighters. She blushed in shame and started fidgeting with her fingers. "Urgh… ehm… hello, guys?"

"My respects, Mistress Juliet!" replied R.O.B., flashing his light once and bowing slightly.

"Hi, Juliet!" responded Jeff, readjusting his glasses and waving his hand.

"_Hello, Juliet! You don't have to be so nervous. Relax."_ said Mewtwo telepathically, waving his long tail.

Juliet stared at the Pokemon for a while and realized that he was him who was having a telepathic link with her.

…_right! Mewtwo is a powerful psychic Pokemon, after all... wow, my first mind invasion, yay!_

"Ok… err, sorry if I have interrupted you! I didn't mean to disturb…"

"Nah, that's fine! You don't have to apologize! TEC is still sorting data, we're only waiting for a response." replied Jeff, smiling at the teen and reassuring her. She smiled back and nodded.

"_So… what brings you here?"_ asked the psychic clone, politely.

"Oh, I only need some information. I want to know where the dorms are because… well…"

She lowered her gaze and scratched her head in embarrassment. "…I think I am lost. Eh!"

"_You're not the only one! Most of the newcomers are still not used to this mansion! It's quite normal, this place is rather big."_

"I noticed that…" replied the girl, rolling her eyes.

"_Anyway, for the dorms you have go left when you exit, go straight until you find a sign with written 'Rooms' and the rest comes by himself."_

"…that's all? And to think that I walked for various minutes trying to find the way!"

"Eheh, at least you have made some exercise, right?" said the blond boy, looking smugly at the teen.

"True, true!" replied Juliet, nodding.

Out of nowhere, a Green Metal Alloy appeared and rushed toward R.O.B., beeping furiously.

"Minister, some Metroids have managed to escape from their containment capsule and are trying to escape from the Bioweapons Room. What are your orders?"

"Raise the magnetic shields and lower the temperature. That should slow them down a bit. Then contact Samus so she can take care of them."

"Yes, Sir." And the green robot left the room.

"Whoa! It seems that you've everything under control, uh?"

"If only it were so! It's much more complicated that you think! Today is a rather quiet day, but there are periods in which everything is very difficult to manage!" replied Jeff.

Juliet looked at him with wide eyes, slightly upset.

_Quiet day? Gosh, how are going to be the frenzied ones?_

"But you don't have to worry! We're used to all of this and we always know how to react to everything."

"That's good news!" said Juliet, sighing and relaxing a bit. She then approached the screen and looked intently at all the data running on it. "Can you tell me what are you exactly waiting for? I see only numbers!"

"_We're waiting for a complete analysis of the type of the hacker's attack. Once we have determined how it shut down the security system we can restore it back to normal and correct its defects."_

"A-ah! Who better than a computer can understand where there are holes in the system?"

"Maybe the one who created the system?" asked R.O.B., turning to the screen.

"Maybe…" replied the girl, nodding. "… or maybe not."

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP!

Everyone turned their attentions to the noise and saw a continuous stream of data flashing on the screen.

"_Analysis completed."_

"Great job, TEC! Now leave this to us!" responded Jeff and him and Mewtwo started to hack away on the keyboard, while R.O.B. plugged a wire and helped them digitally. The blond boy has his gaze directed to the screen and his hands seemed to move of their own, while the Pokemon combined his speed with his psychic abilities, synchronizing with the kid and pressing far switches and levers with his mind. The robot's eyes were glowing blue and some digits appeared on them.

Juliet was observing them from a good distance, to let them move freely without disturbing them. She couldn't believe how well they were working together, even if they were from different worlds and had different ways of thinking.

After a couple of minutes, the screen started to illuminate with an intense light and Juliet had to close her eyes and cover them with a hand. The light then dimmed and the girl looked at the monitor. There was a gauge with written 99%, which turned a second later into a 100%.

"We did it!" exclaimed Jeff, holding a fist in front of him and smiling.

"_It seems so…"_ replied Mewtwo, crossing his arms.

"Bzzz, good job Misters! I've already fixed the errors in the system. Now, all the intruders should be get teleported outside the mansion. Well done, team!" added R.O.B., rotating his arms.

"_Right. We won't have any trouble until another hacker's attack…"_

"And he'll find us ready to face it, as always."

"_Sure thing, kid!"_

And the heroes looked at each other and did a handshake in respect to the other. Juliet was baffled: they resolved that problem so fast?

"Whoa, guys… you really impressed me…"

The trio turned to the young lady and smiled at her.

"Nah, that was nothing compared to other things that happened here! There were some virus attacks that were much worse than that!" said Jeff, grinning at the other human.

"Really? Wow…" said the girl, tilting her head. She then shrugged and smiled at them. "Well, I can only imagine what happened in the past. Mh… I'd better go now. Maybe you have some more stuff to do and I want to explore the mansion now that is fans-free. I'll see you later, ok? And thanks for the directions!"

"You're welcome, Mistress Juliet. Take care!" "See you later, Juliet!" _"Have a nice walk!"_ said R.O.B., Jeff and Mewtwo respectively. The girl nodded and exited the room. It was much better: no more squeals or shouts or running or hiding or escaping or whatever. She could hear some faint 'hoorays' shouted by some fighters at distance and she simply smiled. Finally some peace!

* * *

><p>The rest of the day was rather uneventful: she helped the Smashers by cleaning some of the mess left by the hordes of fans and tried to approach Lucas slowly, as recommended by Doctor Mario. But the kid wasn't too willing to interact with her and with a rather lame excuse moved to another section of the mansion. She felt bad for that, but kept sweeping the floor with a broom.<p>

_Wary and bashful. Give him time, Juliet, give him time… dang, why it is so difficult?_

After hours of cleaning she returned to her room to take a quick shower before dinner. She put on a few tracks of the dance CD, dancing and singing in the bathtub like a crazy.

During dinner, which consisted of sushi and sashimi (because you know, the Smashers have Japanese origins after all), she talked to Pit and Ike and they both volunteered to help her with her self-defense training when she had fully recovered. Pit also said that he had to leave the mansion for a few days because Palutena had summoned him to fight an old threat that has been revived: Medusa! Juliet looked at the angel in admiration and said him to bring with him some souvenirs.

"Ah ha ha, ok! I'll try to pick something during my journey!"

"Thanks! Aaah, I can't wait for your return! You have to tell me what you have done when you'll be back here!"

"And you'll tell me something about your reality. Deal?"

"Deal!" replied Juliet, obtaining an handshake from the winged warrior.

The angel saluted his fellow Smashers and in a mystic light disappeared, ready to accomplish his mission.

After dinner, she walked around the Mansion's outside, looking at distant stars and comets before going to her room for a well-earned rest.

She lied on her bed reminding what happened during the day: she saw for the first time real-life Brawls, she discovered some secrets about the Mansion and its residents, she explored new places and strengthened her friendship with some characters. All of this in one day.

And it was only day one.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, guys… that's all for now. Next time we'll make some more explorations and discoveries. We'll be visiting Smashville, so prepare for a lot of original places (and a few non-Smash characters)! I'm going to put some "official" worlds and enemies later, but right now I want to put my inventive at work, trying to be as Nintendo-like as I can.**

**Juliet: YAY! More explorations for me! YUPPIE!**

**Shinywolf: And I still have no idea if I made some interesting Brawls. They can be quite boring and I don't know if I bore you somehow, reader!**

**Juliet: Well, I enjoyed them! They were fun!**

**Shinywolf: You're my character. Your opinion doesn't count.**

**Juliet: *angrily* HEY! I don't belong to anyone! ANYONE!**

**Shinywolf: Sure, sure… well, reader, if you have some questions you can ask me. I'll be glad to respond ASAP.**

**Juliet: I have one question: what happened to the black monster? And to Master Hand? You didn't say anything about their whereabouts today!**

**Shinywolf: I have many things planned in my mind for them and they'll both reappear soon. Stay tuned, my dear reader!**

**Juliet: Yeah, stay tuned! Goodbye for now!**

***Shinywolf***


	6. Ch 5: around Smashville in 80 minutes

Chapter 5: Around Smashville in more than eighty minutes

**A/N: Time for some exploration! Finally we're going to explore the surroundings of the Smash Mansion! Yay!**

**Juliet: Around Smashville… eighty minutes… it sounds a lot like a crib to me!**

**Shinywolf: Yeah… reference, guys! Try to guess who I'm referencing! It's quite easy!**

**Juliet: Smashville… you couldn't think to a better name, could you?**

**Shinywolf: Err… was that a rhetorical question?**

**Juliet: Nope. You lack originality! Rack more your brains!**

**Shinywolf: Ah! I'll show you what I can do! Keep reading!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own any Nintendo or any other companies' characters, but I own my original characters and original places.**

**Juliet: Hey! I already told you! I don't belong to anyone!**

**Shinywolf: *rolls her eyes***

* * *

><p>Emptiness. A vast stretch of emptiness was spreading out in front of the black being's eyes. The monster smiled at the sight, breathing huge amounts of antimatter air.<p>

_"HOME… I'M FINALLY AT HOME! AFTER SO MANY YEARS… I'M AT HOME!"_

The being walked around the place, raising little clouds of cosmic dust with every step taken and looking all around him.

_"THIS PLACE HASN'T CHANGED. EVEN IF I WAS ABSENT FOR SO LONG IT'S STILL THE SAME."_

The monster then started floating and flew toward a seemingly random direction. There was still something that he had to do.

* * *

><p>In another side of the immense nothingness two creatures were residing, surrounded by some transparent pillars and floating geometric solids. One of them was resting on a levitating cube, curled up into a ball and waving a long metallic tail, while the other was walking around the place, waving his paws all over some translucent spheres while releasing some strange silver liquid from them and singing.<p>

"Lah, lah, lah… all so tidy, all so clean… lah, lah, lah…"

**"Aaagh! Stop your stupid chant right now! And why are you even bothering to keep this place in order? As if our Milord is going to return…****"**

"Aww, don't be so pessimistic! I'm sure that Milord will return soon! He will return… I know he will!"

**"You dream too much! Face the truth… countless years has passed since his imprisonment and he's still not here! How can you explain that?"** asked the other, raising his head and looking at his companion.

"Eh…" the creature stopped his activity and put a paw over his mouth, thinking to an answer. "… mh… ehm… do you have an optional question?"

**"Tsk, figures!"** said the being, shaking his head and lowering it again. **"Admit it! We're destined to stay here for all the eternity. There is no way we can see the outside again."**

"Are you really sure about that, brother? Have you already checked the entire dimension?"

**"Of course I have! I checked it thrice and couldn't find a single hole! We're trapped here for good!"**

"If only we could still open portals…" replied the brother, lowering his gaze and sighing. Suddenly his eyes were caught by a far dark figure that was moving toward the duo at high speed. "Brother, look! Something is coming!"

**"Say what?"** replied the other, standing up and following his sibling's gaze. He narrowed his eyes to try to determine what was advancing toward them, but the shape was too distant for him and couldn't be identified. **"Be careful, brother! If that thing has evil intentions you must be ready to retaliate!"** said the being, spinning his tail and creating a little tornado.

"Got it!" responded his companion, creating various water whips between his paws.

The two creatures watched cautiously the approaching figure, tension filling the air and the attacks increasing in strength. The solids around the place started to become surrounded by an ominous dark aura until they became completely black with some red shades. Both the brothers noticed that and stopped their attacks.

**"It can't be…"**

"But it is!"

The twosome went toward the shape, observing attentively every single movement of the dark being. When he was only a few meters far they bowed in respect.

**"M-Milord! You have returned!"**

"Milord! You're here!" said the other, before turning to his brother and smirking. "I told you he would return! I told you!"

**"It seems you were right… for once."**

The sibling glared at the other, slightly indignant, but didn't reply. The black monster hovered in front of the duo and landed, showing his toothy grin.

_"GREETINGS, MY LOYAL MINIONS. FINALLY WE MEET AGAIN, AFTER SO MANY YEARS."_

**"Yes, Milord. Welcome home. We have been waiting for you."**

"Yeah! Always waiting for you, Milord!"

_"I'M SO GLAD TO BE BACK!"_

The black monster looked around him, seeing dark shapes floating around him, and smiled. _"AND I SEE THAT YOU HAVE KEPT THIS PLACE IN ORDER."_

"Of course! Such an important entity like you can't stay in a dirty and extremely chaotic dimension!"

The other follower rolled his eyes. **"Right…"** replied the being, crossing his arms. **"Milord, may I ask you how you managed to escape from your dimensional prison? Not that I doubted you could, but I'd like to know how you did that."**

_"OH, THAT WAS EASY."_

The black monster waved his hand and a series of cubes and prisms compounded a throne behind him. He then seated down and answered _"EVEN IF I WAS RATHER LUCKY, TO BE HONEST. A REALITY PORTAL APPEARED IN THE PROXIMITY OF MY PRISON AND I DISRUPTED THE BALANCE OF THE TUNNEL BY LEAVING A LIVING BEING INSIDE IT. YOU KNOW THE REST."_

**"Oh. A sacrificial mortal. Very clever, Milord!"**

"But what kind of being have you sacrificed, Milord?"

_"NOTHING IMPORTANT, ONLY A MERE POWERLESS HUMAN. NOT A BIG DEAL."_

**"I see. So, Milord… what is our next move?"**

"Yeah! Do you have something in mind? Do you want us to wreak some havoc among the mortals? Torture some mortals? Destroy some heroes? Steal tons of candies?"

The black monster and the other follower stared at the creature with an empty expression. "What? I love candies!"

_"YOUR PROJECTS ARE REALLY AMBITIOUS, EXCEPT THE LAST ONE, BUT NO. MY PLAN IS SIMPLE YET EFFECTIVE."_

**"Really? What is it, Milord?"**

_"YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE VARIOUS WORLDS AND DIMENSIONS AND RECRUIT SOME MORTAL ALLIES. WE'RE GOING TO NEED THEM."_

**"Allies?"** shouted the two brothers at the same time. They looked to each other for a moment, then again at their lord. **"But Milord, you have a whole army at your disposal. Why do you want to rely on untrustworthy mortals?"**

"Right. Not that I have something against your decision, Milord, but it's quite… strange?"

_"I DON'T QUITE LIKE THE IDEA EITHER, BUT THINK ABOUT THAT… WHAT DO HAVE IN COMMON MORTALS LIKE BOWSER OR GANONDORF OR EVEN TABUU?"_

"Oh, I know that, I know that!" shouted the being, flailing his arm. "They're... considered villains, right?"

_"CORRECT. BUT THEY HAVE SOMETHING ELSE IN COMMON."_

"Uh, really? … well, I have no idea."

**"… maybe… the fact that they were all defeated by the ones called heroes or good guys?"**

_"EXACTLY! HEROES…"_ said venomously the black monster, gritting his fangs and scratching some cubes with his claws.

The three beings fell silent for a while, before one of them spoke. **"But I still don't understand, Milord. Why rely on mortals?"**

_"DURING THE PERIOD IN WHICH I WAS IMPRISONED IN THAT ORRIBLE PRISON I WAS THINKING: WHY WE HAVE LOST AGAINST THOSE TWO HANDS? WE HAD THE POWER AND THE PHYSICAL STRENGHT TO SUCCEED, SO WHY WE HAVE LOST?"_

The two subordinates looked at the dark being with quizzical looks, so the latter resumed. _"THAT'S BECAUSE WE LACKED ALLIES. THEY RELIED ON THE HELP OF THE GODS AND SOME MORTAL HEROES WHILE WE WERE ALONE AGAINST THEM. AND SO WE HAVE LOST DUE TO NUMERICAL DISADVANTAGE."_

**"Ehm… correct me if I am wrong, Milord… but Tabuu gathered some enemies of the heroes from different worlds and still he has lost."**

_"TRUE, BUT THINK CAREFULLY… WHAT IS THE OBJECTIVE OF A HERO?"_

"Well… I think protecting his or her world from menaces."

_"CORRECT. AND IF WE TRY TO ATTACK OR INVADE THEIR WORLDS THEY'LL SURELY RETALIATE. AND IN OUR ACTUAL CONDITION WE WON'T HAVE MUCH CHANCES OF SUCCESS."_

**"So, Milord?"**

_"SO THAT'S WHERE THE ALLIES WILL COME IN HANDY. THEY'LL BASICALLY SERVE AS A BAIT, AND WHILE THE HEROES WILL BE OCCUPIED CONFRONTING THEM AND BEING WEAKENED BY THEIR ASSAULTS WE'LL GATHER THE POWER THAT THOSE HANDS STOLE ME. AND WHEN I'LL RECOVER ALL MY ENERGY THERE WON'T BE ANY BEING CAPABLE TO STOP OUR ADVANCE. WE'LL BE UNRELENTING! WAH HA HA HA!"_

The siblings were astonished and looked at their master with admiration.

"Whoa, Milord… this… without doubt… sounds like a perfect plan!"

**"Yes. And since nobody, except us, is capable to detect our presence or our dimension we won't have any trouble. Hit-and-run… quite easy strategy."**

_"YES… HOWEVER AS I ALREADY TOLD YOU MY POWER HAS BEEN TAKEN FROM ME AND SHATTERED IN LITTLE BITS, SCATTERED ALL AROUND THE VARIOUS UNIVERSES AND TIMES. I'M STILL NOT ABLE TO DETECT THEIR LOCATIONS, BUT WHEN MY DARK POWER WILL BEGIN SPREADING AROUND THE WORLDS I'LL BE ABLE TO LOCATE THEM. IN THE MEANTIME GATHER AS MANY ALLIES AS YOU CAN, POSSIBLY MORTALS THAT HATE THE SMASHERS' GUTS."_

**"Yes, Milord."**

"We won't fail!"

**"But first we need a little help. The Hands have blocked a good amount of our powers and we're not able to open portals or use our inner abilities."**

_"MH… I THINK I CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THAT…"_

The black creature raised his hand and a faint reddish aura appeared around it. Soon after, a similar aura enveloped the siblings and they both felt their powers slowly returning to them. After a while, the aura vanished and the black being smirked.

_"DONE! I MANAGED TO UNLOCK A FEW OF YOUR POWERS, INCLUDING THE ABILITY TO OPEN PORTALS. WHEN YOU'LL BRING ME SOME POWER SHARDS I'LL BE ABLE TO UNLOCK MORE SKILLS."_

** "Understood. Thanks for your gift, Milord."**

"Your effort won't be in vain."

_"… I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT. NOW GO AND RETURN VICTORIOUS!"_

**"Yes, Milord!"** said the siblings in unison, bowing to their lord. They then moved to another section of the dimension to let their boss rest peacefully.

"So, brother… do you know where to go?"

**"Yes, I've already detected a mortal that could be useful to us. I only need to convince him."**

"Oh, yeah, me too! And is going to be fantastic. Eh he he!"

They reached a point and looked at each other.

**"Well… see you later, brother!"** said the being, opening a purple and yellow portal.

"See you. Good luck, bro!" responded the other, opening an orange and blue portal.

**"Good luck to you too!"**

And with a last handshake they departed to their respective locations, determined to accomplish their missions.

* * *

><p>Unaware of the evil plan concocted by the monster who had abducted her, Juliet walked around the Mansion's outside, enjoying the good weather and whistling.<p>

"Ah, this is another perfect day here at the Smash Mansion. A high sun is illuminating all the area and there is no trace of rabid fan. How can this day be better than that?"

She grinned and looked up, seeing some weird birds flying around. She then looked in front of her and saw the Smash Kids playing hide-and-seek along with the Assist Kids and some Smash and Assist Teens. She considered the idea of joining them, but dismissed it, wanting to stay alone to ponder a little about herself. After sitting down on a bench, she inhaled a good amount of fresh and sweet-scented air and exhaled slowly, her mind filling with drowsiness.

_Sheesh, I need some kind of distraction before I get bored and fall asleep. But what can I do?_

The human moved her gaze back and forth before her eyes set on two running figures that were approaching her. She looked at them curiously.

_Mh… maybe that's the kind of distraction I was looking for… let's see…_

***RUNNING FIGURES***

"One, two, three. One, two, three. Come on, Olimar! You can be faster than that!"

"Huff… huff… w-wait… wait up, Falcon! I… huff… I don't have long… huff… legs like you!"

"All excuses! You lack exercise! Keep going!"

The two captains were running on a rather bumpy road, full of pits and big rocks. The man in blue had no trouble with the uneven path, his steps agile and fast, but the little astronaut had to jump a lot to keep the other man's pace. His helmet was steamed for the heavy breathing and tried various times to remove the moisture from it, with little success. Five Pikmin were following him loyally, one of each color: red, blue, yellow, purple and white.

"P-please, Falcon! Only a five… huff… minutes break! Please!"

"Mh… fine."

The taller Smasher stopped and looked behind him, waiting for the other fighter. Olimar reached him after a while, his steps shaky and unsteady, and his Pikmin came nearer to him, ready to help him if needed.

"Never… ever… run like that… again!" said the short man to himself, his hands on his knees.

"You need to increase your endurance, Olimar. And you know exactly why…"

The spatial Smasher raised his head and looked at the other with grimace. "Right… for THAT reason… but I'm just too tired to keep going…"

"Well, there is a bench over there. You can seat down and relax a bit if you want."

"D-definitely… I need some rest. Let's go."

The men walked toward the bench while Juliet followed them with her gaze. When they were a few meters far they recognized each other.

"Hey! Hello, Juliet!" greeted Captain Falcon, raising his hand and putting it on his front.

"Hi, Juliet!" saluted Olimar, waving his hand. The Pikmin behind him chirped joyously.

"Yoh! Captain Falcon, Captain Olimar!"

The Smashers came near to her and the astronaut asked "What are you doing here by yourself? Why you're not with the other kids?"

"Mh, I'm not in the right mood for playing. I needed some time to… think, about some things."

"Think? About what?" asked the beige man, sitting beside the girl. His Pikmin followed suit, along with the other captain.

"Well… about all what happened… but mainly about my actual emotional state. I'm feeling so… out of place."

"Oh, you're not the only person to feel out of place. I felt exactly the same when I arrived here at the mansion. It's only a matter of adapting and getting used to all the strangeness of this world. You'll see, in a few days you'll get accustomed to this place and to the residents."

"Are you really sure about that?"

"Of course I am. You don't have to worry. Remember that we're here to help you. If you need help just ask and we'll assist you."

Happy chirps came from the little plant creatures beside the little captain, as if they were confirming what the Smasher had said.

"Well said, Olimar! A Smasher must be ready to help any person in distress!"

"Indeed… as long as he doesn't do more harm than good!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You know exactly what I mean!"

A heavy silence followed, before Captain Falcon spoke again. "Ah, right. That thing! But it was only an accident! I didn't mean to do that!"

"I know that, but it's better to remind you, just in case!"

Juliet looked at the duo with a puzzled look, not understanding what they were talking about.

"And… what happened exactly?"

Captain Falcon moved rapidly his hands in front of him. "Oh, nothing. Never mind. It's not important!"

Juliet raised an eyebrow, looking a bit skeptical. What was he hiding? Some kind of obscure secret?

"Mh, ok."

"Anyway… do you have some kind of plan for the day?" asked Olimar.

"Nope. But I'd like some kind of distraction that doesn't involve violent activities or childish games."

"Then why don't you come with us? We've planned to go to Smashville for a good walk and we have room for another person."

"Uh? Smashville?"

"It's the name of the city around this mansion. It has all types of activities and shops, and is the place where people from the various worlds gather to exchange products and information."

"Mh… you roused my interest. When are we going?"

"But even now, if you want." responded Captain Falcon.

"Really? Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" exclaimed Juliet excitedly.

"Eh he he! What enthusiasm! Follow me to the hangar."

And the group stood up and went to the designed place.

* * *

><p><strong>A few minutes later…<strong>

"So that's the hangar…"

"Yep. Here are guarded all the vehicles of the residents. Be careful to not touch anything or you risk to trigger some anti-theft."

"Ok, Olimar. I'll be careful."

The team was walking through a series of various means of transportation. The girl could see some go-karts, presumably belonging to Mario, Luigi and the Shy Guys; Samus's and Olimar's spaceships; Wario's bike; Fox's, Falco's and Wolf's Landmasters and Arwings; Excitebike's bikes and Infantry and Tanks' tanks (no pun intended); Meta Knight's Halberd; Kirby's Warp Star…

_Wow, this space is so big… and how many vehicles! Will I get the chance to ride or even drive one of them someday?_

Suddenly Captain Falcon stopped and the others halted behind him. "Here we are. This is one of my most precious treasures: the Blue Falcon 4P! It's similar to the other Blue Falcon, but is suited for more people."

Juliet looked intently at the machine, her eyes shining in amazement. The car-spaceship was glimmering among the other vehicles, its blue and yellow bodywork radiating speed and power and its glass gleaming and clear.

"Impressive, isn't it?" asked Falcon to his team.

"Really impressive, and to think that I'm not a fan of cars or similar!" replied Juliet, nodding.

"Get on board! We're departing immediately!"

"Yes, sir Falcon!"

The party approached the machine and the taller Smasher gestured Juliet to follow him. He opened the front seat, near the one destined to the driver, and motioned her to enter.

"Please, milady!"

"Oh, thank you! What a gentleman!" said the teen, smiling at him. She then entered inside the vehicle and fastened her seatbelt. Olimar and his Pikmin went on the back seats and Captain Falcon seated on the driver's seat.

"So… are you ready to go?"

"You bet I am! Let's go!" answered Juliet, grinning and moving her fists in anticipation.

"But first, Falcon, remember to not go too fast! We're used to the high speed, but I don't think Juliet is physically prepared to withstand that!" advised Olimar, securing the seatbelts of his Pikmin and his own.

"Don't worry, Olimar! I'll go slowly! Promise!" responded the blue captain, giving to the astronaut a thumbs-up.

The Hocotatian (habitant of the planet Hocotate, Olimar's world, in case you didn't know that) nodded and turned to the young human. "Tell me, Juliet. Are you alright in there?"

"Yup, I'm ok!" responded the girl, giving a reassuring smile to her companions.

"Well, if everyone is ready we can go!" exclaimed the F-Zero pilot, starting the machine. The motor roared and the jet engine activated, with blue flames ejecting from it. "Falcon Drive!"

Juliet and Olimar sweatdropped and grew a little worried, while Captain Falcon grasped the steering wheel tightly and pressed on the accelerator.

VROOOM!

Suddenly the vehicle sprinted forward and increased steadily in speed. The hangar door opened completely and in a while the car was traveling on a long straight road. The trees and the grass were almost a blur and some people ran away from the rapid machine.

"And that's what you mean for going slowly?" asked the small Smasher to the driver, holding his seatbelt firmly.

"Of course! I'm not even going beyond the 120 miles per hour! Stop worrying too much and enjoy the ride!" responded the driver, glancing for a second at the passengers and grinning.

Juliet gripped the seat, her heartbeat becoming faster and faster for every second passed and her body slightly squashed by the high speed. "Ungh… how… far… is the… city?"

"Mh… if we keep going at this speed we'll arrive in a minute or two."

"Ah… o-ok…"

And in fact, after a minute or two of traveling, some buildings could be seen in the distance. The young human focused her gaze on the faraway palaces, trying to determine their shapes. The vehicle passed a sign with written something, but all she could read was 'Mas Ree'.

"Here we are!" announced Captain Falcon, turning to his team. The passengers nodded slowly and the driver parked on a free slot, surrounded by some blue barriers. "So? That wasn't that bad, right?"

Juliet didn't answer. She kept looking straight, some curly locks covering partially her eyes and her hands clawing the seat. Olimar looked concerned for his Pikmin and after assuring that they were alright turned to the blue man, slightly annoyed.

"Captain Douglas Jay Falcon! That wasn't exactly what I meant for going slowly. You seemed a speed demon!"

"Aww, come on Olimar! I avoided all the pedestrians and stayed under the speed limit!"

"But you forgot that we're carrying delicate Pikmin. And an untrained teenager! You must be more cautious!"

The Smashers looked at the girl. She had still her gaze fixed ahead and rarely winked. The fighters grew a bit nervous… maybe the F-Zero pilot had really exceeded?

"Eh… he he he… he he ha ha ha ha…"

The captains blinked and looked at each other in confusion. Was she… laughing?

"Ah ha ha ha! That… that was… so AWESOME!" exclaimed the teen, raising her fists and grinning.

"What?!"

The Smashers were surprised by her behavior and she looked at them, showing a huge grin.

"Did… did you really enjoy that?" asked the Hocotatian, visibly baffled.

"Oh, yeah! I have already experienced this kind of thrill before. A friend of a friend of a friend of my brother owns a sports car and, even if he bragged a lot about that, he invited us for a drive with him. His car was fast, but it can't be compared with that! That's superfast! And I love that!"

Olimar sighed and crossed his arms, but after a while showed a tiny smile. "Well, I'm glad that you're ok! For a while I thought that you've been traumatized by Falcon's reckless driving…"

"Naah, I'm fine! But thanks for your interest!"

"Now that we got that clear what do you think if we get off that little gem and go to the city?" asked the pilot, glad to have gotten out of trouble.

"Oh, right! Let's go!"

Everybody unfastened their seatbelts and got off the car. They distanced themselves from the vehicle and a blue barrier enclosed the Blue Falcon in a protective cage.

"Mh… that seems like some kind of anti-theft…" said Juliet, readjusting her hair by passing the hands on her head a couple of times.

"Yes. Every single parking space has this type of security. It consists in creating a shield that analyzes the DNA and brain waves of the people that were in the vehicles. If the shield detects wrong DNA or evil intentions it seals completely the car until the original owner comes and unlock it. Only because there are powerful fighters at the mansion doesn't mean that thieveries are null." explained Falcon, checking his car one last time.

"Oh, I see…"

"Smashville!" "Let's go!" "Explore, explore!" cried the Pikmin from behind the teen, jumping and running in erratic ways. A whistle resounded and the plant beings gathered around the astronaut, ready to obey.

"Rosso, Azul, Gelb, Violine, Shiro! Don't scamper in that way! Remember that enemies are hidden everywhere and can come out and eat you if you're not careful!"

The legion of plant creatures looked apologetically and released some cries in understanding. They then started looking around cautiously while staying close to their leader.

"Wow! It's incredible how you managed to get on the ball in a flash!" said Juliet, impressed by the spatial man's performance.

"Thanks! If you can't keep them in control they can easily meet their ends! They're quite simple creatures and even if they are capable to recognize danger they're not too bright when they have to take a decision. But they are really loyal and obedient."

"Oh. And I see that you gave them names…"

"Yes. I grow very fond of these creatures and I tend to give them names. Rosso is the Red Pikmin, Azul is the Blue one, Gelb is the Yellow buddy, Violine is the Purple Pikmin and lastly Shiro is the White one."

"Very original names!"

The teen and the captain smiled at each other, before hearing Falcon calling them. They immediately rushed to his side and entered in the city.

Amazed brown eyes darted back and forth, gathering as much information as they could. Juliet and her team were walking on some kind of country path, with houses and vegetations coexisting in harmony. It resembled a lot the jogging path of Wii Fit, as in the distance she could also see some windmills and a tall clock tower. People of any kind and species could be seen there and among them she recognized some Miis walking with their Nintendogs or jogging, various different colored Koopas and Bob-ombs, several humans accompanied by Pokémon, presumably Pokémon Trainers, and a good number of two-dimensional NES characters, like the Balloon Fighters and the ducks from Duck Hunt. Her eyes then focused on a sign and she approached it.

"Smash Street…"

"Yes. That's Smash Street, the main road of Smashville!"

The girl turned to Captain Falcon and he continued "It's connected to all the other roads of the city and it's the only road that lead to the Smash Mansion."

"Ah, interesting. And what kinds of attractions or activities are present here?"

"Well, there are parks, paths where you can walk and jog, various herbalists' shops, interplanetary restaurants and gyms and mini-games corners! But the main attraction is without doubt the Crossroads Clock Tower: it's said that if people from different places gather on the top of the tower when the last beam of sunlight hit the campanile's bell, their lives will be connected and they will be able to meet each other again someday, no matter the space or time."

"Wow, fascinating legend!

She looked at the far clock tower. Its bronze and crystal pillars were glimmering with different colors, illuminating the city with its light and towering above the built-up area. "If that's true, I want to climb that tower and try it out!"

"Ah, we won't stop you! But first you need to find someone special to you. I don't think you want to be connected with some guy like Wario or similar…"

"Heck, no!" replied the teen, looking at the tall man with horrified eyes. "Absolutely no! I have nothing against him, but connect… HIM…" she shuddered at the thought and rapidly shook her head. "Urgh! No thanks, no thanks!"

The two Smashers looked at the young human with amused gazes, mentally snickering after her reaction. "Ah ha ha ha! Relax, Juliet! I was only joking!"

"I thought so…" said the girl, rolling her eyes. "But yeah, I'll find someone to bond with. I just have to search, right?"

"Right!" responded Olimar, nodding at the teen.

After a while, the group reached a big round plaza with an immense fountain in the middle and various roads connected to it. There were various benches and vending machines, along with various baskets for separate refuse collecting. The majestic Crossroads Clock Tower seemed even more imposing up close. Juliet had to put her right hand on her front and partially cover her eyes in order to block a good amount of reflected light and try to see the top of the building.

_Whoa… that's without doubt one of the most impressive towers I have ever seen! It's like a more extravagant version of the Big Ben. _

"What are you going to show me, my guides? How are you going to impress me?" asked the girl to her teammates, averting her gaze from the lofty steeple.

"Beach!" "Sun!" "Sand!" squealed the Pikmin behind Olimar.

"I think they already gave you the answer!" responded the little astronaut, amused by his followers' enthusiasm.

"What? This city has a beach? Heck, why didn't you say that earlier? I love beach!" replied the teen, stamping her right foot happily.

"Really? Come on, then! Follow me!" said Falcon, before running away.

"H-hey, wait up!" shouted the Hocotatian, but the other captain seemed to not hear him. The astronaut sighed and gestured his Pikmin and the girl to follow him. The group started running after the man in blue and went through a sandy and rocky path, with palms and tropical plants placed on the sites of the road.

"Huff… always running away! Gosh, that man really can't live without… huff… racing!" muttered Olimar.

"Well… huff… he's a famous pilot in his world and… huff… he raced for almost all his life! I know that he is… huff… also a renowned bounty hunter, but I think that… huff… speed is his life!" replied Juliet.

"Yeah, maybe you're… huff… right! But he must understand that not all people… huff… love running and racing like him!"

"I only hope that… huff… the beach isn't too far…"

* * *

><p><strong>Some minutes of following later…<strong>

"Huff, huff, huff… gasp! I've never… huff, huff… run like that in my whole fifteen-year-old life! Gasp!"

"Y-yeah… huff, huff… and we lost sight of Falcon! Umpf!"

"What's the name of this… huff… place?"

"Uhm… that's the Choconut Beach, if I recall right…"

"Choco… nut… beach…"

The girl looked around the place, while constantly breathing great quantities of marine air. She saw various seagulls, water-flying Pokémon, jumping dolphins with goggles, Bloopers and several other marine creatures. She could also see Piantas, Tanookis, Sea Zoras and some Waddle Dees with their parasols. Most of them were playing some beach games like beach volley, marbles games and were even building sand castles, while some other were dancing the hula or strumming guitars and banjos and similar. On the distance she could also see various boats and ships moored to the dock, with a high lighthouse towering them.

"Ok… now, how are we going to find that impatient speed-lover?"

Olimar crossed his arms and thought for a while, before answering "Maybe I know where we can find him…"

The spatial Smasher restarted walking and the plant creatures and the teen went after him. Azul tried several times to enter in the water, but the beige man wouldn't let him. He feared for the little creature's safety and always kept an eye on him. The others didn't give him many problems, mainly because they couldn't swim.

After a couple of minutes, the group found the F-Zero pilot sitting nearby a bar, drinking some kind of transparent liquid and talking to a sort of red otter, who was wearing a scallop around his neck, a beige beanie hat and blue dungarees.

"Ah, here he is!" exclaimed Olimar, pointing toward his fellow Smasher.

"Oh, you found him!" replied the teen, looking a bit surprised. "How did you know that he was here?"

"Almost every time we come here at the beach we drink something at "Starsmash Café", so I thought we could find him here. And I was right!"

The blue man noticed the group and waved his arm, as for asking to approach him.

"We'd better go and hear what he has to say."

"Yeah…"

The Hocotatian whistled once to recall Azul and to gather all his little friends and walked toward his fellow Smasher. Juliet followed them closely, raising her head and letting the sea breeze caress her face and blow on her hair.

_Too bad I didn't bring my swimsuit! I would have liked a good swim…_

"Hey, you're finally here! Why did you take too long?"

"Falcon, not everybody here is as fast as you! Who did you think we were? Sonic?"

"Aww, don't be mad Olimar! At least you have got some exercise!"

The mentioned person shook his head exasperatedly. "Ahh, you never change, Falcon! You never change!"

Juliet listened attentively at the heroes' dialog and snickered. She found amusing seeing somebody as small as Olimar scolding someone as big as Falcon.

"Even during the Subspace Emissary Events you were always running and punching and kicking and everything! You should slow down once in a while to let more leisurely people follow you!"

"Maaan, the dude with the cosmic suit has a point. Even if you go as fast as lightning the world keeps going at its usual speed. It's pointless going fast when you can reach the goal by going slowly."

Everybody turned to the voice. The red otter was drinking a glass of sparkling water, while looking intently at the party.

"Always talking your illogical philosophy, Pascal?" inquired the blue captain.

"I'm only feeding knowledge. It's up to you to make it bloom and spread." Pascal then started polishing some seashells gathered during the day, whistling an "Animal-crossish" tune.

"Whatever…" the F-Zero hero turned to his companions. "Anyway, sorry if I didn't wait for you! To atone for my rash behavior, I'll offer you something to drink. What do you think?"

"Sounds fair to me. At least in that way we'll reintegrate some of the mineral salts lost during our run. What's your opinion, Olimar?" said the young human, smiling at the small astronaut.

"Mh, that's fine! At least is something…"

They both seated down and turned to the counter. The Pikmin surrounded their leader's chair and seated on the sand, raising little clouds of dust, before playing joyously with the gravel. The Pianta barman looked at the group and asked "What would you like to drink?"

"I'll take a Hoco-hoco Juice, please."

"For me a Virgin colada, _s'il vous plaît_."

"Ok, coming soon!" replied the plant-man, before gathering the utensils to prepare the drinks.

Juliet started looking around curiously, amazed by the amount of people from different planets and dimensions gathered in a single world and coexisting without any problem.

_Wow, the Smash Kids were right. This place is like a sort of Babylonia! But I wonder… how can they communicate with each other so easily? Universal language? A gigantic translator? Incomprehensible "game logic"? ...maybe the last one!_

"Here you are!" said the barman, handing the drinks.

"Oh, thank you!" responded Juliet, taking her frosty and frothy yellow liquid from the bar owner, while the beige man took his drink and thanked the barman. The Hoco-hoco Juice was a strange green and orange fluid, which smelled of tropical fruits.

"Sniff, sniff… hmmm, that drink seems good. Is that a specialty of your world?"

"Yup. Louie obtained it by mixing some fruits gathered during our trip in the Pikmin Planet. It's made of Cupid's Grenades, Disguised Delicacies, Seeds of Greed and a peculiar powder of my world. It became so popular that even people from other worlds wanted to taste it."

"Mh… so is basically made of cherries, kiwis, chestnuts and a strange powder, right?"

"Well… yes. But I suggest you to not try that. It can be poisonous for some species, especially for the oxygen-breathing ones."

"U-uh, I see… but how are you going to drink it with your helmet up?"

"I have my ways."

The Smasher extracted a strange round ring and applied it in front of his mouth. After that he picked up his drink, pulled the straw toward his mouth and the plastic tube magically went through the helmet's glass, without breaking it. The Hocotatian took a sip of his beverage and looked at the young lady. "See?"

"Oh, yeah! Wow, it's so cool! It's like a sort of portable hole!" replied the teen, looking at him with surprised eyes.

"Yep, more or less! It isolate the oxygen, which is toxic for me, from the atmosphere, allowing me to drink and eat without troubles. It's a vital thing for me."

"I guess…" responded the girl, drinking and savoring her nonalcoholic cocktail. It reminded her the moments she had with her little brother and her parents during a trip on a tropical island. She was very young and couldn't remind many details like the island's name or for how much time she stayed there, but remembered very well her first pineapple juice and the sweet mango's aroma which constantly tickled her smell. Ah, good times…

**_It's always good to remind the past, if it helps in shaping the future…_**

"Uh? Who…"

The teen started looking around frantically, trying to locate the source of the voice.

_Again that creepy scary voice… what the heck is going on?_

"Juliet? What is it? Is there something wrong?" asked Olimar, visibly puzzled.

"Mh? Oh, no! Everything is ok!"

"…are you sure?"

"Yup! No need to worry! I thought I heard someone, but it seems I was wrong!"

"Well, I didn't hear anything. Falcon?"

"Nope, neither I did!" replied the other captain.

"I was wrong then…" said Juliet, shrugging and drinking the last sip of her beverage.

_But one day I'll discover what that voice is. I have the feeling that is very important!_

"Aaanyway… what is the next stage of our tour?"

"Mh… I'd suggest the Shoso District. I think you're going to like it!"

"Oh, sure! And I'll take this chance to buy some things for my children and for Louie!"

"Shoso District? Ok, then! Let's go!"

She pointed her finger to the blue captain, before adding "Slower, this time!"

"Roger that!" replied the pilot, smiling. He took out some shining coins from his pocket, counted them and handed them to the barman, while Olimar gathered his Pikmin around him and ordered them to follow him. "Here you are, Perry: nine Smash Coins."

"Thank you so much! Hope to see you again!"

"Indeed! Goodbye, Perry! Goodbye, Pascal!"

"Bye bye, man! And you dudes, try to keep this man's temper under control." said the red otter, glancing briefly at the tall captain, before resuming his shells' polishing.

"Hey!"

"Ahahah! Ok, we'll try our best!" responded Juliet, smirking at the blue captain. "Well, thanks for the drinks! See ya!"

"Yeah, thank you!" added Olimar.

"You're welcome! Bye!" saluted the Pianta, before turning to other customers.

The group resumed their tour (slower this time!), going through another sandy path, with several cocoa trees and coconut palms at the sides.

_Now I see why it's called Choconut Beach…_

The girl turned one last time toward the beach, enjoying the last breeze of fresh air, before following her team on a cemented track.

* * *

><p>Crowd. Traffic. Noises. Lights. Shops. Boutiques. Ateliers. That essentially was the Shoso District. "The place where shopping and souvenirs are a must", as said on a sign.<p>

Juliet felt a bit nervous staying among so many people, but the shop windows and what they were showing were enough to keep the girl's mind distracted. She was astonished by the variety of products sold in one single place, all of them coming from different worlds and times.

"Whoa! This district resembles a lot a metropolis!"

"Yeah! In the Shoso District is concentrated the majority of the businesses of the city. If you're looking for something, you can be sure to find whatever you're searching here."

"Oh… ok! But Falcon, how do you know all those info about the city?"

"I participated at every single tournament held in this world, along with Mario, Luigi, Link, Kirby, Fox, Samus, Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Ness, Donkey Kong and Yoshi, and we all saw this city lay the groundwork and grow big and important. It's like a second home for us Smashers."

"Mh, I didn't know you could be so poetic! You impress me!"

"I'm a man full of resources, you know!"

The teen laughed briefly and grinned at him. "Ah, really? Well, I'm not questioning that!"

She paused for a moment, before asking "Ehm… exactly, where are we going?"

"Well… what about the Banette's Toy Box? It's the nearer place and I'll take this chance to find some gifts for my kids!"

"Sounds good to me."

"But not to me! What will people think if they find me inside a toys' shop?"

"Maybe… that you have a soft side, Falcon?" replied the teen, smirking at the tall man.

"…I don't think so…"

"You're free to go around alone, if you want. Suit yourself! If you think that going in a toy shop isn't manly enough…"

"Agh, fine! I'll come! But hurry on, ok?"

"Ok!" responded his companions, smiling and nodding. Then the group went through an isolated street and found the shop immediately. The girl looked intently at the decorations: they had mostly dark colors and Jack-o'-lanterns with blue flames burning inside them, but the sight wasn't scary at all. The pumpkins had broad cheery smiles and the toys inside the shop seemed innocent enough.

"Weird way to decorate a shop… are we at Halloween, by chance?"

"Naah, it's only the owner that is a bit eccentric. But don't let her habits and aspect deceive you. She's a rather cool person."

Juliet just shrugged. "If you say so…"

The two Smashers and the Pikmin entered inside the store, with Juliet following them closely. The place was quite big, with baskets full of stuffed toys and various characters' trophies, board games and mechanical playthings placed on the shelves. The group came face to face with a young woman, who was wearing a large purple witch hat, a long black and purple dress and a necklace with a small crystal ball hung in it. She had brown eyes and hair, both of them with a faint shade of red, and some magenta sparkles floating around her.

Beside her stood a strange dark gray creature, with a big head equipped with a long zigzag ribbon hanging down from the rear and three spikes on the top. It had long arms and short legs, and a bushy yellow tail. Its eyes had an odd azure shade and its mouth resembled a lot a zipper. Around its neck had a little golden pendant with something written: Pinocchio. Was that its name?

_Mh? Is that a… Banette? One of those Ghost-type Pokémon that are said to hunt their careless owners and lay powerful curses? What the heck is it doing in a shop for kids?_

"Oh, hello dears! Welcome to my humble shop!" greeted the woman, showing her snow-white smile to the group, while the Banette waved its arms and looked at the party with joyous eyes. Juliet looked oddly at it, but after a while returned the greeting with a little smile.

"Good morning!" "Good day!" greeted back Olimar and Falcon, bowing slightly. The Pikmin squealed and jumped happily, with the ghost staring at them curiously.

"Please, go ahead! You're free to wander around my shop as long as you want!"

"Thank you!"

The captains led the way, while the Pikmin and the teen followed them.

_"Treat all the toys here with respect… or else…"_

"What?"

The adolescent whirled around to meet the Pokémon's stare. "Did… you say something?"

"Nope. Have a nice stay, girl!" responded it, looking at the young human with an innocent gaze.

"Thanks…" responded Juliet, a bit of nervousness present in her voice. The lassie rapidly rejoined her companions and looked around her curiously.

_Tons, tons, tons of toys! So many toys! They're making me feel younger! Eh he he!_

"So, Olimar… what are you looking for?"

"Well… I don't know. I want to find something interesting and memorable. But I really have no idea of what to buy!"

"Do you want me to help you?"

"Oh, I'd really appreciate that!"

The young human smiled at the Smasher and started scrutinizing the toys. "Ok, let's see what we have here…"

Her gaze moved quickly over the items, trying to find something that Olimar would like. She glanced for a moment at the tall man behind her, seeing a very bored look in his features.

"Falcon, why don't you help us in finding some cool toys? The more the merrier!"

"I'm not much interested in those things. I have other issues in my mind."

"Like what?"

"Nothing of your concern."

Juliet looked at the Smash Brother with a slightly annoyed look, but before she had a chance to say something Olimar tapped her leg, obtaining her attention.

"What do you think about this? Do you think is this the perfect gift for my daughter?"

The girl looked intently at the item in the astronaut's hands and her eyes widened slightly.

"Awww, that's so cuuute!" said the teen, her eyes sparkling and her hands joined together near her head.

What the fighter was holding was a Toon Link's stuffed doll with a string behind his back, which the girl thought allowed the toy to reproduce some prerecorded tracks. It was of high quality: it almost seemed to have life in it.

"It's so kawaii!"

"You believe so? Or maybe I should buy some other doll?"

"Mh…"

She followed the Smasher's gaze and her eyes sparkled even more. There were dolls representing all the Smashers, the Assists, the Field Characters and even the Items.

She wanted to play the giddy goat and try to make some plush fights between the toys, but managed to maintain her self-control and push all her girly and childish thoughts deep into her mind. But how she wished to…

_No, Juliet! Think clearly! What will they think if I act like a baby? Focus!_

"Well, they are all good toys, all of them very well made!"

"Sigh! That's why I can't decide, they are all too good!"

"Ah, you're spoiled for choice, that's for sure!" replied the girl, grinning at the astronaut. "But maybe I know what you could buy…"

The teen approached the shelf and hummed to herself, before grabbing a pink box with two dolls of Peach and Zelda, accompanied by a crown with various holes and fake precious glimmering stones and jewelry.

_If I recall right, Olimar's daughter loves jewelry. So…_

"What do you think about this set? A lot of girls love princesses and gemstones (with me being one rare exception!). Maybe she might like this."

The astronaut took the package from the teen's hands and scrutinized it. He thought for a while, before nodding.

"That's perfect! My daughter really loves jewelry! Thanks, Juliet!"

"You're very welcome!" replied the girl, showing her white toothy smile.

_Phew, I remembered right. Thank you so much, videogames makers!_

"Now let's go and find some gift for my son!"

"And then we'll get out of here, right?" asked Falcon.

"Sure! We're not staying here all day, aren't we?"

"I hope not!"

Juliet laughed for a moment, before asking "What? Are you afraid to have your image destroyed by staying in a shop for kids?"

"Of course not!"

_Ah, but I think that he's afraid of that! I can already imagine the title… the great Captain Falcon frequents a toy shop: from the racing cars to the radio-controlled machines. That's quite a feat!_

Juliet giggled at her thought.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Oh, for nothing! You made remember a funny fact. It's not important! But now we'd better resume our tour, don't you think?"

"Right! Let's go!" replied Falcon, taking the lead. Juliet, Olimar and the Pikmin followed him. The group left the stuffed toys' aisle and went toward another zone. There were mostly sets of buildings blocks, electronic devices and items for the outdoor life.

"Here we are!" said Olimar, motioning his Pikmin to stay close to him.

"Ahh, great! Let's find that gift!" responded Juliet, slightly less enthusiastic and confident than before.

_A gift for Olimar's son… that's great, I don't know anything about him! I only know that he really admires his father! Mh… what can I do? …let's see… if I were my bro, what would I pick?_

Both the human and the hero were so focused on their search that they didn't notice Falcon moving to another side of the aisle. The man in blue has his gaze fixed on a little toy car displayed in a little rectangular glass case. It was mainly red and blue with white stripes and stars coursing through it.

"Great Eagle…"

The Smash Bro was staring the object, memories filling his mind and nostalgic thoughts swirling the little machine.

"Hey, Falcon! What are you looking at?"

The pilot gave a startled jump and turned to see the young girl, who was standing beside him and looking at him curiously.

"Oh, n-nothing!"

"You're lying. Come on, you kept staring at it with a certain interest. What does it have so special?" replied Juliet, trying to give a sort of reassuring smile to the man and to obtain some interesting answer.

"Well, it's a long story… and weren't you helping Olimar, a while ago?"

"Yeah, I was. But eh, it seems that I'm not too good in choosing toys for boys. What can I say? Anyway, don't try to get rid of me! Tell me why that car interests you so much!"

"Uhm… it's not very important…"

"Then I see no reason to hide that information! Come on, please!"

She started to make puppy eyes, while tilting her head cutely and holding her hands together like in a prayer. Falcon tried to resist the hypnotic charm of the younger human, but at last he gave up.

"Ah, fine. I'll tell you if you stop doing that!"

Juliet smirked and reassumed her normal attitude. "Ok! Go ahead!"

The blue man sighed and turned his gaze to the toy. "You see… I wasn't always the fast competitor that you see in front of you. When I was younger I was one of the slowest people among my friends."

"Really?" asked Juliet, surprised by such news.

"Yes. Some guys would often pick on me because of my slowness, always calling me Slowglas, Captain Sluggish or similar. There was a point that I didn't want to go outside to not meet those bullies."

Falcon glanced at the teen beside him and saw that she was looking at him empathetically, before resuming "But then… I met it… the Great Eagle."

"Uh… that car?" enquired the brunette, pointing to the model car.

"Yeah, but not the toy. The real deal. It was so... amazing… and speedy… and shining…"

The captain nodded to himself, reminiscences returning in his mind. "…and the pilot… he became like an idol to me. I saw how he was admired and praised for his talent. That's why… I wanted to become a F-Zero racer."

"Oh, I see. You wanted to emulate him, and maybe become as famous as him."

"Yeah, that was my dream."

"Well, you accomplished it. How did you do that?"

"I started training. Hard. Very hard. In order to be a F-Zero racer you must have a great figure and resistance, and I wanted to be the very best. And after various months, my speed and strength increased considerably and nobody picked on me again. And later, I became a famous officer on the Internova Police Force and an admirable pilot."

"Oh, what a sweet story!" said Juliet, smiling sweetly at the Smasher. "That's the proof that by working hard you can obtain what you want."

"Indeed…"

"Since we're talking about the past, can you tell me something about that acc…"

"Forget it, I've already told you enough!" responded quickly the blue man.

"It was worth a shot…" replied the teen, rather disappointed.

Olimar approached the duo accompanied by his Pikmin and looked at the couple with a content look.

"So… have you socialized enough?"

The humans turned to the Hocotatian and Juliet smiled.

"I guess so. At least I discovered something about Falcon's backstory." responded the girl, glancing for a moment at the mentioned person, who simply nodded, before looking again at the little man. "And you? Have you found something for your son?"

"Yes. I found this ball that change color every time it's hit." said Olimar, showing a sort of transparent soccer ball with an internal sphere full of a strange blue liquid.

"Uh, really? Can I try it?" asked eagerly the teen, looking at him with a pleading gaze.

"Eh he he, sure! Just don't break it, ok?"

"Ok!"

The adolescent grabbed the ball from Olimar's hand and started dribbling it with her hand. For every bounce on the floor the ball changed color: BONG, green… BONG, yellow… BONG, orange… BONG, red… BONG, pink… BONG, purple… BONG, black…

She then grabbed the ball with both hands, making it return to its original color, and gave back the item to the spatial man.

"Well, that's an amazing little item!"

"Yep, I think my boy is going to like it! He really loves sport!"

"Oh, yeah? Interesting…"

"That mean that we're going outside, right?"

"Yes, Falcon! I'm done!"

"Uff, finally! Let's go!"

And with that the group left the aisle behind and went toward the counter with the witch and the Banette.

"So? Have you found what you were looking for?" asked the purple woman, her smile as shining as the sun.

"Yep! Two fantastic presents for my children!"

"Wonderful! Please, can you pass me the products for a little while?"

Olimar nodded and gave the items to the woman. She passed the objects on a scanner and returned the toys to the astronaut.

"Jewel Kit plus Chameleon Ball… all together that comes to twenty Smash Coins."

Olimar nodded again and extracted the money from a pocket present in his suit. Juliet looked intently at the gleaming coins given to the shop owner, before turning to the F-Zero hero.

"Hey, Falcon! Stupid question: can you tell me how do you earn Smash Coins?"

"Well, we earn money mostly through our sponsors. They give to the fighters a little contribution for just attending the tournament and for the services and entertainment that we offer to their customers. And whenever we fight on a Brawl we receive a compensation depending of our results and our performance: the higher we get and the better our performance is, the more we earn."

"Interesting… and how much do you gain, more or less?"

"Depends. Usually Smashers gain twenty Smash Coins per week, the Assists fifteen and the Field Characters ten. I don't know how much money staff members like Brewster gain, but I heard that they are very well paid."

"Uh, surely this seems a good business."

"You bet it is. You have no idea how much money those sponsors gain thanks to us. Thousands and thousands of Smash Coins!"

"Gosh, really? I wonder why…" said the young lady with a bit of sarcasm in her tone.

"Ok, guys… let's go?"

The humans looked at the Hocotatian and nodded. The group greeted the shopkeeper and her Pokémon and exited the little shop.

"Now, I just need a gift for Louie…"

"Do you already know what to buy?" asked Juliet, glancing at the shop windows with amazed eyes.

"Yes, I have a clear head of what I want to buy."

"Good. So where are we heading?"

"We're going to the bookstore. It's at only a couple of meters from here."

And in fact, the party reached the shop in a few seconds. Olimar entered in the shop together with his Pikmin, while the pilot and the teenager preferred to stay outside. Juliet offered the astronaut to hold the presents for him and he gladly accepted.

"Mh, I wonder what Olimar is going to buy…"

"He said that he wants to buy a gift for Louie. So… maybe he's going to buy a cookbook."

"What makes you think so?"

"Well, if I recall right, Louie loves cooking. I think a cookbook is the most appropriate gift for him."

Falcon stared at the teen for a while, before saying "Umpf, it seems that Doctor Mario was right. You really have an incredible knowledge of all of us."

"Yeah… ungh, I'm starting to wonder if this is a good thing… I don't want to create enemies!" said the teen, looking a bit concerned.

"As long as you don't use your knowledge for dastardly plans, blackmail or personal profit I don't think that having a great knowledge is a bad thing. Just look at Zelda: she has an amazing knowledge and she doesn't abuse it. She use her wisdom only for good deeds and to give advices to the ones who need them."

"Glad to hear that…" responded Juliet, relieved by the man's words.

After a while Olimar exited from the shop with a book. To be exact, a _cookbook_.

"Hey, guys! What did I miss?"

"Oh, nothing interesting. We were talking about this and that. Out of curiosity, what did you buy?"

"Mh, "1000 and more recipes from all the cosmos". Louie really love cooking and with this he can experiment more and more recipes. I think he's going to like it!"

Juliet looked at the blue man with a "told you" look, leaving the hero slightly baffled.

"Well, if we are done shopping we can move to another part of the city. Were are we going now?" asked the teen, enthusiasm overflowing and feet stamping.

Olimar and Falcon looked at each other for a second, before looking again at the young human.

"I think I know where we can go…"

* * *

><p>"Holy… cheese!"<p>

The brunette had ever mouth wide open, surprised by the scenario in front of her: there were high black skyscrapers covered by blue and white shining lines, so high that made the girl feel dizzy. She shook her head and kept her gaze to a even level, concentrating her look only on the shops present here. She saw several fast-foods and delicatessen stores, along with some bright electronic signs and entertainment areas. In the distance she could also see various penny arcades and some people dancing on the street (street dancing, perhaps?).

"Whoa…"

"Surprised, Juliet?" asked the beige Smasher, amused by the teen's expression.

"Yep, truly surprised! Wow, everything is so sparkling here! What's the name of this street?"

"Mh… Pork-O-Belly Road."

Juliet snorted, then giggled, then covered her mouth, then burst out laughing.

"P-Pork… O-Belly… Road? Ah ha ha, what kind of name is that?"

"Well, there is a reason of why is called that way. As you can see this road is full of shops that sell junk food and caloric stuff. And so they decided to attribute the name to the lifestyle present here."

"Mh, that kinda makes sense!"

She stopped laughing and looked around her. "This seems like an opposite to Smash Street. While this place is technological and focuses on unhealthy food and activities, the other place focuses more in harmony with nature and fitness. That's quite an interesting contrast!"

"Uhm, you're right!"

"And tell me… what else is possible to find here?"

"Well, here you can find also a cinema and a theater, although the latter is almost unused. But once in a while, they play wonderful musicals and shows." responded Falcon.

"Oh, ok."

The group passed by various stores when they heard a male voice. "Hey, _señores_! Over here!"

The party turned to the voice and the two captains smiled and greeted back. Juliet looked at the interlocutor with interest. He was a character she had never seen before: he was a rather tall tan young boy with black hair and green eyes. He was wearing a poncho with a military pattern, a yellow bandanna with depicted a flame around his head and a golden necklace dangling from his, well, neck!

_Who's that guy? I've never seen him before! And that look is quite odd! Who is he?_

"Fuego Estallido! Nice to meet you, buddy!" saluted Falcon, putting his hand on his front.

"Nice to meet you too! What are you doing here? Are you looking for some weapons?"

"Oh, no! We're only accompanying this girl around the city. She's a foreigner and doesn't know almost anything about this world."

The strange character turned to the young lady, took her hand and kissed it like a gentleman. _"Encantado de conocerla, señorita! _(Pleased to meet you, milady!)_"_

Juliet blushed for a moment, surprised by his chivalry, before doing a little bow with her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you too!"

"What's your name?"

"Ehm… I'm Juliet."

"My name is Fuego, as you have already heard. I own this shop together with my father. We sell weapons and Power-ups."

"Uh, interesting!"

"Yes. He's the one who provides all the weaponry at the Smash Mansion." said Falcon.

"Really?"

"Yup! I'm also a good mechanic and weapon builder and inventor." responded Fuego, proud of himself.

"Wow!"

"So, guys, how is the life at the Mansion?"

"Bah, ever since Master Hand left everything is more chaotic and disorganized! Crazy keeps creating a mess while TEC has to always keep an eye on him. Luckily every time they broadcast that stupid soap opera about mushroomy people he becomes much quieter and we can truly relax!" responded Falcon.

"Ahah, Crazy is unique in his unique way! He's such a character!"

"Yeah, but if he had a bit more of self-control life would be much easier!"

"Come on, he doesn't seem that bad!"

"Juliet, you have only seen the tip of the iceberg! You have yet to see how Crazy truly is."

"Gulp! Now you're scaring me!"

"Don't worry, we won't let you in his clutches. We don't want you to get hurt. Only do as we say and you won't have any problem, ok?" said Olimar with a very reassuring voice, patting the girl's leg. She turned to him and smiled, glad to have some support.

"Ah, so you live at the Mansion… with the Smash Brothers. Man, you're such a lucky girl!"

"Yeah, I consider myself lucky in a sense."

"Tell me one thing, Fuego. How are things going with Lily?" asked the blue man.

The dark boy sighed and responded "Uff, all things are going bad! She doesn't even seem interested in me! To the contrary, she seems to avoid me!"

"Eh, Mercury and Venus Psyenergy Adepts can be very hard to deal with. They can be as moody as water and as firm as stones."

"Yeah! And since I can manipulate fire, electricity and wind like a Mars and Jupiter Adept she is repelled by me! Sigh, why is it so hard?"

_Psyenergy? Wait… that's the type of magic present in Golden Sun! Wooh… so Lily seems a Golden Sun character. Mh, interesting…_

"Ehm, well… plants and fire, land and wind, water and electricity… they don't go too well together! Maybe that's why is difficult for you."

"I know that, Juliet… but the heart wants what it wants."

"That's true. And the opposites attract. Well, that's… interesting. Maybe you have half a chance!"

"Anyway, don't worry too much! You're both still very young and maybe in the future she'll change perspective about you and your tribe. Just give her time!" said Olimar.

"I hope so…"

"Fuego! More working, less yapping! Time is money, ya know!" yelled a very annoyed voice.

The boy groaned and yelled back. "Yes, Papa! I'm working, I'm working!"

"He's still making you work hard without giving you a break, uh?" asked the blue captain.

Fuego snorted and responded "Ah, you have no idea! I know that weapons and Power-ups are a big business, but still…"

He huffed and crossed his arms, before resuming. "Well, we'd better stop chatting or Papa will give me a lecture later. Sorry, guys!"

"It's ok, Fuego! Remember to not give up! Sooner or later she'll notice you!"

"_De acuerdo_, Falcon! (Ok, Falcon!)"

"But don't oppress her or she'll back off even more!" advised Juliet in a very serious tone.

"I'll keep that in mind."

"And always be nice to her. Maybe in that way she'll become more willing to interact with you." added Olimar, smiling at the lad.

"Got it!"

"Well, we'll leave you to your work. Goodbye, Fuego!" "Bye! It was a pleasure to meet ya!" "See you soon!"

"Bye bye! Thanks for the tips!"

And with that the group left the shop behind and continued the tour. Juliet kept looking everywhere, observing everything with genuine interest, when the captains and the Pikmin came to a halt. Juliet stopped just in time to avoid a collision with them.

"Err, Falcon, maybe is better to not go that way. You know what there is ahead…"

"Mh, right! We'd better take the other road. It's longer, but at least is safer."

"Why? What's ahead?"

Olimar looked at the girl. "Over here there is a very dangerous zone of the city: the Duskdawn Lane. It's a very perilous road full of darkness, thieves and night clubs. A paradise for the dark creatures like the Boos, but a very dangerous track for anyone else."

"So even this city has a dark side."

"Yes. I hope you don't want to go through it…"

"Of course not! I'm a little curious, but not reckless! I don't want to enter in the cage of the lions without a reason!"

She looked ahead and saw a sort of entrance shrouded by a dark energy, which resembled a huge wildfire. Even the light of the Crossroads Clock Tower couldn't dissipate that veil of darkness and coldness, that somehow made the girl shiver.

"Uh, l-let's take the other road, please! The only sight of the entrance of that road is creeping me out!"

The captains nodded and motioned her to follow them through another branch of Pork-O-Belly Road. The girl had a chance to see the cinema and the theater from the outside. She was strangely attracted by the latter, as if a mysterious force was trying to reach her, but before she had a chance to enter in the building her guides called her and she quickly rejoined them.

_Whoa, that was weird. What happened?_

"So, Juliet? Have you enjoyed the tour?"

"Uh?"

She looked at the astronaut and nodded. "Oh, yeah! I really liked it! Eh! But I suppose that we haven't explored all the city, right?"

"Your supposition is correct. We explored the most attractive parts of the city, but there is still more to see."

"I can imagine, this place is really big! Is much, much bigger than my own town! I can't wait to explore the rest!"

Suddenly, the Pikmin stopped and looked around them, waving their leaves and buds in expectation. Their leader noticed that and immediately gasped.

"Uh oh…"

"You'd better run while you can, Olimar! I think she's coming!"

"She?" asked Juliet, confused by this sudden turn of events.

The spatial man nodded and started running, but… a candid blur pounced the astronaut at blazingly fast speed, making both of them fall on the ground.

"OLLYYY!"

"Wagh!"

THUMP!

Juliet tensed in surprise and scrutinized the aggressor who was standing on the Smasher, trying to determine what was that, while Falcon, who was behind her, started snickering.

The short man was pinned to the ground by a hairy, white little creature. It has a yellow mane around the neck, orange bat wings and a sort of antenna on its head, equipped with a fluffy yellow pompom on the tip. It has also big catlike ears, a big pink nose and half-closed eyes.

_What the… a Moogle?_

"Oh, Olly! You're here, you're here, kupo!"

"Me… guri! Get off of me!"

"I missed you so much! Where were you, you mischievous rascal?"

"Err… at the Mansion, where else?"

"Really? But I couldn't find you anywhere yesterday!"

"And you wonder why?"

The Moogle smirked. "Oh, I see. You were playing hide-and-seek with me, kupo? Too bad I didn't find you…"

"Luckily you didn't find me…" muttered lowly the Smasher, low enough so that the Moogle couldn't hear him.

The white creature wrapped her paws around the Smasher's chest and squeezed him tightly. As a result Olimar began to squirm and wriggle to free himself, without success.

"Aaaah, let me go, let me go!"

"Olly! Kupo!" said the white creature with a sweet voice, while a little heart appeared over her head.

Juliet started giggling while Falcon was laughing very hard. Olimar looked at them with pleading eyes.

"Would you two… urgh… help me pull her away from me, please?"

"But why? You are so sweet together! I don't want to ruin such a wonderful moment!" retorted the taller man between his laughter.

Olimar glared at him. "Falcon!"

"Maybe we'd better help him, don't you think?" asked Juliet, barely choking her laughter.

"Yeah… too bad, is really fun!"

The brunette approached the duo of little characters and asked in a very friendly voice "Excuse me, would you leave my friend go, please?"

"Mh?"

The Moggle looked up at the young human and raised her antenna high. "Hey, you seem new! Who are you?"

"I'm Juliet!"

"Hi, Juliet! My name is Meguri, kupo! Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too! Now, will you please…" replied the teen, moving her hands back an forth to shoo her.

The Moogle pouted, but for some reason complied. The Final Fantasy character got off the Smasher, who gasped and breathed heavily, before glancing at him. "I'm not done with you yet. I'll wait, I'm very patient."

That remark made Olimar blanch. Meanwhile, the Pikmin gathered around the female creature, squealing in joy.

"Hello Rosso, Gelb, Azul, Violine and Shiro! How are you, sweeties?"

The plants squealed again and responded with a "Fine!" at the same time.

"See, Olly? Even the Pikmin think that we're made the one for the other. You must accept it!"

Olimar didn't reply, he just sighed in exasperation.

Juliet was observing the strange behavior of the Pikmin, finding odd that they stayed as close to Meguri as to Olimar.

_Maybe they're gathering around her for the same reason that make them follow Olimar: for the antenna. Ah, that's a very amusing scene._

She could see with the corner of her eye Falcon approaching the group, still sniggering to himself.

The Moogle turned to the teen. "Ops, sorry if you ignored you earlier! Teh he he, how embarrassing… when I'm around these guys I forget about the rest, eh he he!"

"No problem, I think I understand… somehow…"

"Tell me, what is your profession? Are you a new merchant, a fighter or a simple tourist?"

"Mmm, I'm more a tourist."

"I see… and where are you from?"

"I'm from… Earth."

"Which one?"

"… dunno. Earth!"

"Ok…"

"What about you? What is your profession?"

"I run a herbalist's shop together with my partner, kupo. I'm an expert healer and sorceress, while my associate has full knowledge of potions and defensive magic."

"Very interesting!"

"I'd like to tell you something more, but right now I remembered that I have still some errands to run for my associate! I'm sorry, kupo!"

"That's ok! Duty comes first, after all!"

Juliet swore to have seen Olimar smiling and waving his fists in content, before regaining his composure. She giggled at his expression.

"I'll see you next time, guys! Especially you, Olly!" said Meguri, turning to the astronaut and winking. The spatial Smasher sweatdropped, hoping that their next meeting was as far as possible.

"Ok, Meguri! We'll catch you later!" responded Juliet, smiling broadly.

"Give to your partner my regards!" said Falcon.

"Bye…" muttered Olimar with absolutely no enthusiasm. The Pikmin behind him chirped their goodbyes.

"Goodbye! See you soon, kupo!"

And with that the Moogle blew a little kiss and ran off, wanting to end her errands before it was too late. When the white creature left Olimar did a little victory dance together with his Pikmin, glad to have gotten rid of the invasive little creature. Juliet and Falcon looked at him with weird looks and so the Hocotatian immediately stopped, quite embarrassed.

"Weird gal, that Meguri…" said Juliet, glancing the way where the character left.

"You have no idea… the most rabid fan I've ever seen! She's such a stalker!" responded the astronaut, shaking his head in annoyance.

"Eh, but you got to admit that you have some traits in common."

"Trust me, they're much less than you think!"

"Well, team… what are we going to do now?" asked the blue man.

Olimar looked up at the sky. There were some menacing clouds gathering and fusing together to create a whole new cumulonimbus, crackling loudly and flashing various times bolts and lights.

"We'd better return at the Mansion! From the look of these clouds it seems that a storm is approaching."

Juliet gasped lowly and her eyes widened at the sight of the black electric masses of water vapor who were booming their mighty cries.

"Urgh, I don't want to soak myself! When my hair is wet it becomes impossible to brush!"

"Luckily the parking is near! Let's go!"

* * *

><p>Minutes of running later, he group was riding on the Blue Falcon 4P at a moderate speed. Everybody was strangely quiet, even the always chirping Pikmin. Nobody knew what to say, for some reason. Until…<p>

"I got to admit that the city is wonderful. I've never seen a metropolis in my whole life. And now I've seen one. I'm… happy."

The captains looked at the teen. She was observing the world outside the car with a certain interest, colorful scrubs passing rapidly in front of her eyes and the sky assuming a tangerine tint. The fighters smiled.

"Well, if you're happy, Juliet, we're happy too!" said Olimar to the young human.

She turned to them, bright brown eyes fixed on the heroes and a big smile present in her traits. "Thanks for the trip! It has been really fantastic! I simply loved that! Thanks!"

"Always at your service!" replied Falcon, giving her a thumbs-up.

"Yeah! That's what friends are for, right?" said the other Smasher to the girl, the Pikmin besides him chirping in agreement.

The girl nodded at her teammates, amazed by such altruism. "You're great, guys! You're really great!"

The group could see in the distance the huge mansion, that became bigger and bigger with every meter covered.

_If the next days are going to be like that staying here is not going to be bad. Not at all._

* * *

><p>In another world, in another universe, in another time, things weren't as cheery as in the Smash World. Trails of darkness and evil forces were slowly enveloping a planet, draining the energy from the plants and the terrain and transforming the affected areas in a dull and empty desert of solitude and emptiness. A giant white hand was observing this scenery in front of him, furious for not being able to do something to stop that calamity. The destruction was quite limited and involved only a little area, but he knew quite well that it wasn't going to be that way for long. He saw various worlds that were mostly inhabited, but there was one world that took his attention, especially for a special sacred area.<p>

_"HYRULE…"_

The hand sprinted toward the world at high speed, determined to stop the disaster before it was too late. It was time to meet… the Goddesses.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wooh-oh, guys! That's the ending of chapter 5! I have the funny feeling that this chapter is a bit bulky. What do you think?**

**Juliet: I dunno. But there is one thing that I know.**

**Shinywolf: And what it is?**

**Juliet: Shiny, you have broken two records!**

**Shinywolf: I did?**

**Juliet: Yep. Longest chapter to date and longest time taken for it.**

**Shinywolf: Ops, you're right! Ahahah! That's incredible! But there is one thing that I must say: quality is more important than time. I don't want to fret myself, and if I try to stay in the time limit the chapter is going to be cruddy and rushed. Patience is gold, my dear readers!**

**Juliet: Ok! Can you at least tell them what are you going to write next time?**

**Shinywolf: Oh, right! Next time we're going to have a different point of view. I guess you're tired to always look what Juliet does, uh?**

**Juliet: Hey!**

**Shinywolf: Don't worry, you won't vanish! You'll simply be downgraded as cameo! After that chapter you'll regain your role as main character.**

**Juliet: Of course you'll do that! I'm the star!**

**Shinywolf: Sure, sure … anyway, I hope to see you soon! Bye bye!**

**Juliet: Yeah! _Arrivederci_!**

***Shinywolf***


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